Dundee celebrates women who made city's history

Dundee celebrates women who made city's history

The creators of a trail celebrating the life and times of inspirational women from Dundee want to see other towns and cities in Scotland take up the idea.
 
The 25 women commemorated by bronze plaques in Dundee include artists, trades unionists, social reformers, suffragettes, a shipyard welder and a marine engineer.
 
Responsibility for the upkeep of the trail was handed over to the city council on Friday.
 
Mary Henderson, one of the founders, said: "When we researched the project there were so many interesting women that we couldn't give them all plaques or the place would look as if it's got blue measles, so we are setting up a website with a page called further footsteps with about 100 more inspirational women.

"Women's history needs to be rediscovered and there's been a lot of work done on that recently, but there's still lots to come.

"We would love to see blue plaques over every city and village in Scotland."

The handover to the city council - accepted by Lord Provost John Letford - took place within sight of a plaque commemorating Agnes Husband.

One of Dundee's first female councillors, she championed the poor and petitioned for better education. At the age of 74, she was awarded the Freedom of the City.

The Lord Provost said: "It's one of the major projects as far as I'm concerned because this city for many many years has moved forward on the women within it, from the jute trade and so on.

"The guide book says 25 steps, but I think about walking in the footsteps of giants."