Frances Melville (1873-1962), Mistress of Queen Margaret College, 1909-1935.
Born and educated in Edinburgh, Melville was appointed warden of the women's hall of residence at the University of St Andrews in 1900, before becoming mistress of Queen Margaret College in 1909. The College, at North Park House on Queen Margaret Drive, had been founded in 1883 and absorbed by the University of Glasgow in 1892.
The Mistress and her staff were responsible for the administrative functions and tutorial guidance of all the university's women students. There was a dramatic rise in the number of women students in the years following the First World War and this placed a strain on resources. In response, Melville promoted numerous fund-raising activities such as the 1922 Muckle Mercat, a revival of medieval market in the College grounds. She retired in 1935, when the administration of the college was transferred to Gilmorehill and North Park House was sold to the BBC.
Melville had many other interests, and was an active supporter of the women's suffrage movement.
Reference: Mitchell Library, GC 052 BAI
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Libraries Information and Learning
Keywords:
markets, mistresses, Muckle Mercat, North Park House, Queen Margaret College, suffragettes, University of Glasgow, women students