Constance Hamilton
Encyclopedia
Constance Easton Hamilton (1862 – 1945) was the first woman member of Toronto City Council
and the first woman in Ontario to hold elected office at either the federal, provincial, or municipal level (one year before Agnes MacPhail
). The elective office of public school trustee was open to Ontario widows and unmarried women who owned property from about 1884, although the first female trustees to be elected in Toronto were in 1892.
Born in Yorkshire, England in 1862 to Dr George Fowler Bodington (1829-1902) and Caroline Mary Eaton (1825-1873). She attended Conservatory of Music in Leipzig, Germany and became a pianist. Hamilton immigrated to Canada
with her family in 1887 and settled in Vancouver
.
Hamilton married Canadian Pacific Railway
land commissioner and civil engineer Lauchlan Alexander Hamilton (1852-1941), who was also Vancouver City Alderman and designed the Coat of arms of Vancouver
. In 1888 the Hamiltons' moved to Winnipeg
(her husband was transferred there as senior CPR land commissioner) and then to Toronto
in 1899., A supporter of women's suffrage
, she became president of the Equal Franchise League of Toronto. In 1919, women obtained the right to run for elected office in Ontario. Previously married women had been barred, by law, from doing so. Hamilton ran for Toronto city council and was elected for a one-year term in 1920
. She was re-elected for another one-year term in 1921
.
After two terms in office she resigned so that she could continue to campaign for immigrant settlement and refugee issues, and for equal rights.
In 1979, city council established the Constance E. Hamilton Award on the Status of Women. The award is made annually chosen by the women members of city council. To qualify, a recipient must be a resident of Toronto whose actions have had a significant impact on securing equitable treatment for women in Toronto, either socially, economically or culturally.
Her husband died in 1941 and she died in 1945. They did not have any children, but Lauchlan had a daughter (Isabella) from his marriage to Isabella Hamilton (1858?-1888).
Toronto City Council
The Toronto City Council is the governing body of the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada.Members represent wards throughout the city, and are known as councillors....
and the first woman in Ontario to hold elected office at either the federal, provincial, or municipal level (one year before Agnes MacPhail
Agnes Macphail
Agnes Campbell Macphail was the first woman to be elected to the Canadian House of Commons, and one of the first two women elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario...
). The elective office of public school trustee was open to Ontario widows and unmarried women who owned property from about 1884, although the first female trustees to be elected in Toronto were in 1892.
Born in Yorkshire, England in 1862 to Dr George Fowler Bodington (1829-1902) and Caroline Mary Eaton (1825-1873). She attended Conservatory of Music in Leipzig, Germany and became a pianist. Hamilton immigrated to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
with her family in 1887 and settled in Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
.
Hamilton married Canadian Pacific Railway
Canadian Pacific Railway
The Canadian Pacific Railway , formerly also known as CP Rail between 1968 and 1996, is a historic Canadian Class I railway founded in 1881 and now operated by Canadian Pacific Railway Limited, which began operations as legal owner in a corporate restructuring in 2001...
land commissioner and civil engineer Lauchlan Alexander Hamilton (1852-1941), who was also Vancouver City Alderman and designed the Coat of arms of Vancouver
Coat of arms of Vancouver
The coat of arms of Vancouver was granted by the College of Arms on 31 March 1969.-History:Over the course of its history, the city of Vancouver has used three distinct coats of arms. The first, designed by City Alderman Lauchlan Hamilton and assumed in 1886, was pictorial in nature depicting a...
. In 1888 the Hamiltons' moved to Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
(her husband was transferred there as senior CPR land commissioner) and then to Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
in 1899., A supporter of women's suffrage
Women's suffrage
Women's suffrage or woman suffrage is the right of women to vote and to run for office. The expression is also used for the economic and political reform movement aimed at extending these rights to women and without any restrictions or qualifications such as property ownership, payment of tax, or...
, she became president of the Equal Franchise League of Toronto. In 1919, women obtained the right to run for elected office in Ontario. Previously married women had been barred, by law, from doing so. Hamilton ran for Toronto city council and was elected for a one-year term in 1920
Toronto municipal election, 1920
Municipal elections were held in Toronto, Canada, on January 1, 1920. Mayor Tommy Church was elected to his sixth consecutive term in office. The most notable feature of the election was Constance Hamilton winning a seat in Ward 3...
. She was re-elected for another one-year term in 1921
Toronto municipal election, 1921
Municipal elections were held in Toronto, Canada, on January 1, 1921. Mayor Tommy Church was elected to an unprecedented seventh consecutive term in office.-Toronto mayor:...
.
After two terms in office she resigned so that she could continue to campaign for immigrant settlement and refugee issues, and for equal rights.
In 1979, city council established the Constance E. Hamilton Award on the Status of Women. The award is made annually chosen by the women members of city council. To qualify, a recipient must be a resident of Toronto whose actions have had a significant impact on securing equitable treatment for women in Toronto, either socially, economically or culturally.
Her husband died in 1941 and she died in 1945. They did not have any children, but Lauchlan had a daughter (Isabella) from his marriage to Isabella Hamilton (1858?-1888).