Vote 100: Dr Jill Liddington speaks to descendants of memorable Yorkshire suffragette Mary Taylor
100 years since suffrage won the right to vote for women, Dr Jill Liddington has spoken to descendants of one of the founding members of the Halifax Pankhurst's Women's Social and Political Union.
Dr Liddington's research into Yorkshire's suffrage campaigners has led her to many descendants of the pioneering women of the local suffragette movement. However, searches for more information on one of the most memorable women of the time – Halifax-based Mary Taylor – remained fruitless until recently.
One of the founding members of the Halifax branch of the Pankhurst's Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), Mary Taylor was one of the campaigners featured in Dr Liddington's 2006 book, Rebel Girls: Their Fight For The Vote, which looked at Mary's commitment to the cause, her participation in a 'Women's Parliament' at Westminster, and subsequent 14-day imprisonment at HMP Holloway.
Last November, Dr Liddington was delighted to be contacted by Mary's great-great-granddaughter Jenny Woodward, and earlier this month was joined by Jenny, Jenny's mother Jan, and three of their relatives on a ‘Suffragettes and Slaves’ walk in Halifax.
