Emily Smith (mayor)
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Emily Smith
Emily Smith ( ) was mayor of the city of Coventry between 1942-3, during WWII and the Coventry Blitz.[1][2] She served as a a Poor Law Guardian, Labour Councillor, magistrate and alderman.[3]
Life and early career
Emily Smith was born Emily Parker in Dudley Hill and Tong, Bradford.[4] In 1915 she moved from Bradford to Coventry. After her husband's death four years later, she brought up their children by herself.[3]
In 1933 Smith argued against the requirement for women officers in Coventry City Council to resign upon marriage.[3]
Mayor of Coventry
On 9 November 1942 Smith was elected Mayor of Coventry.[4] She said that
“for it to be possible for a working woman to become mayor of this ancient city [...] speaks highly for our democracy.”[3]
On 23 February 1943 Smith formally opened Canley Garden Cemetery and Crematorium (https://www.coventry.gov.uk/download/downloads/id/33923/canley_cemetery_and_crematorium_general_information.pdf)
Following the Battle of Stalingrad, Smith led a project with women of Coventry to send an embroidered tablecloth as a message of sympathy to women in Stalingrad. More than 800 women signed their names on the cloth, which was embroidered by Mrs May Adams.[5][6] In 1944 a "bond of friendship" was created between Coventry and Stalingrad in one of the earliest recorded examples of city twinning.[2]
Reflecting on her mayoral year in 1943, Smith said that “All I wanted to be [was] a good mother to the citizens”[3]
References
- ^ "Historic Coventry - List of Mayors & Lord Mayors". www.historiccoventry.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
- ^ a b "A tale of twin cities: how Coventry and Stalingrad invented the concept". the Guardian. 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
- ^ a b c d e Hunt, Cathy (2018-08-30). A History of Women's Lives in Coventry. Pen and Sword. ISBN 978-1-5267-0852-6.
- ^ a b Hird, Horace (1966). How a City Grows: Historical Notes on the City of Bradford. H. Hird.
- ^ "Tablecloth Story | История скатерти". www.talkingbirds.co.uk. Retrieved 2021-05-20.
- ^ "Volgograd: a long association". warwick.ac.uk. Retrieved 2021-05-20.