Priscilla Bright McLaren 1815-1906

Priscilla Bright came from NW England. She had had a good Quaker education and ran a girls school for the mill girls with her sisters. They taught reading, writing and sewing.

Priscilla was active in progressive causes like the anti slavery movement and the anti corn law campaign. She met her husband Dunca Mclaren through the anti slavery campaign. She was disowned by the Quakers for marrying out, so her life became solely based in Edinburgh.

Duncan was Lord Provost (1851-4) and a Liberal MP (1865-81). In January 1870 he presided over the first meeting in Edinburgh in favour of Women’s suffrage.

Both of them supported Josephine Butler’s campaign for the repeal of the ‘Contagious Diseases Acts’. They also supported the efforts to have women admitted to medical school. In 1881 he introduced first “Married Women’s Property (Scotland) Act”

Priscilla was first president of Edinburgh Society for Women’s Suffrage in 1867 and her step daughter Agnes was joint secretary with Eliza Wigham.

In 1882 Scottish Women were granted municipal franchise - she challenged the illogicality of women voting for councillors but not MPs.

1882 was the first year that the annual demonstration in favour of Women’s suffrage was held in a Scottish city – Glasgow -and Priscilla spoke at the rally.

She was active all her life - 2 days before her death in 1906 she dictated a letter of sympathy and admiration to nine women in Holloway prison for their noble courage and self sacrifice.

She had a husband, two brothers, two sons, one nephew and a grandson in Parliament but had no vote herself.

Her step daughter Agnes (1837 – 1913) toured Scotland with Jane Taylour in the early 1870s. Having befriended Sophia Jex Blake she decided to become a doctor in order to help women and children. Much of her later life was spent campaigning for Nuns to be trained as doctors and nurses before undertaking missionary work. Canon law forbade this. It was eventually lifted in 1936.

Picture: Monroe County Library system.