Ruth Dodds (1890 – 1 April 1976) lived in Gateshead,

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and was a writer, playwright and councillor of Gateshead. Dodds was born on 8 May 1890. She was one of three daughters of bookbinder and historian Edwin Dodds and his wife Emily Dodds. Ruth Dodds lived at 'Home House' in Low Fell, Gateshead. She spent the rest of her life living there with her two sisters Hope and Sylvia. She joined the Labour Party after the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and was elected to Gateshead Council in 1929. However, she failed to be selected as a Parliamentary candidate in 1931 and 1936. In 1939 she resigned from the Labour Party in protest of its support for war, and although she later rejoined she was not as politically active. She was made the first woman

freeman Freeman, free men, or variant, may refer to: * a member of the Third Estate in medieval society (commoners), see estates of the realm * Freeman, an apprentice who has been granted freedom of the company, was a rank within Livery companies * Free ...

of Gateshead in 1965. She is known, with her sisters Hope and Sylvia, for founding the

Little Theatre Gateshead The Little Theatre Gateshead is Gateshead's only theatre. It was built during World War II, thanks to the generosity of sisters Ruth, Sylvia and M. Hope Dodds. It is believed that the theatre is the only one built in Britain during the war. The ...

. A commemorative plaque to the three sisters was erected at their Gateshead home in 2005.Gateshead commemorative plaques

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Sources

Asap LiveTyne & wear Archives catalogue of personal papers
1890 births 1976 deaths 20th-century British dramatists and playwrights {{UK-playwright-stub