March 8, 2024
Honoring Women’s History Month and International Women’s Day is a celebration of the remarkable achievements, contributions, and resilience of women throughout history and across the globe. This month-long observance, dedicated to recognizing and honoring women’s accomplishments, provides an opportunity to reflect on the progress made in advancing equality while acknowledging the ongoing challenges women face.
International Women’s Day, observed on March 8th each year, serves as a focal point for global efforts to champion women’s rights and address issues like gender discrimination and inequality. It is a day to celebrate the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women.
As we reflect upon the pioneering achievements of women in construction, it becomes evident that they laid down remarkable foundations that paved the path for the progress of today’s women. Among the exceptional examples of these women are:
- Lady Elizabeth Wilbraham. Around 1701, Lady Elizabeth Wilbraham produced the earliest architectural drawings known to be by a woman, for the rebuilding of St Andrew’s church in Staffordshire.
- Alice Perry. In 1906, Alice Perry is understood to be the first woman to graduate with a degree in engineering in Ireland or Great Britain – possibly the world! She graduated with a first-class honor from Queen’s College Galway (now NUI, Galway).
- Dame Caroline Haslett. In 1918, Dame Caroline Haslett DBE, JP was the first secretary of the Women’s Engineering Society and soon became the voice for women in engineering worldwide. Her work inspired many women to go into engineering and business.
- Amy Johnson. In 1929, Amy Johnson became the first British woman to qualify as a Ground Engineer and for a brief time, she was the only woman in the world to hold that job title.
- Ladies Bridge. Waterloo Bridge is also known as ‘Ladies Bridge,’ as it was constructed by around 350 women during WWII.
Resource: goconstruct.org; “Female Firsts in Construction”.
