A portrait of Margaret McPhun (1876-1960), a Glasgow suffragette.
Margaret was the daughter of Bailie John McPhun, a timber merchant and a councillor in the city's East End. Both she and her sister Frances attended the University of Glasgow, Margaret studying psychology and Frances studying political economy. The sisters were both members of the University's suffrage union and in 1910 joined the Women's Social and Political Union (WSPU), a militant suffragette movement.
In 1912 the McPhun sisters travelled down to London with other Scottish suffragettes to gain publicity for their cause by smashing windows. They were arrested and sent to Holloway Prison, where they went on hunger strike. The WSPU presented them both with hunger strike medals after their release.
Reference: 1280.89.284
Reproduced with the permission of Glasgow City Council, Glasgow Museums
Keywords:
Holloway Prison, hunger strikers, hunger strikes, medals, political activists, students, suffrage unions, suffragettes, University of Glasgow, votes for women, window smashing, women, Women's Social and Political Union, women's suffrage, WSPU