Women's Cooperative Guild, Hull Branch

The Women's Cooperative Guild began as the Woman's League for the Spread of Cooperation in 1883 and changed its name in 1885. It was founded by Alice Acland and Mary Lawrenson and the first branch was in Hebden Bridge in Yorkshire. In 1889 Margaret Llewelyn Davies (1861-1944), a graduate of Girton, became general secretary and from 1893 she had as her assistant Lilian Harris (d.1950). They worked tirelessly, producing pamphlet literature and visiting new branches and became very involved women's maternity issues. They also worked towards global Cooperation and in 1921 were instrumental in the setting up of the International Women's Cooperative Guild with Emmy Freundlich of Austria as first president. In the same year Margaret Llewelyn Davies and Lilian Harris resigned their posts. The 1920s were the high point of the Women's Cooperative Guild and by 1933 there were 72,000 members in 1513 branches. In the 1930s the Guild became involved in peace campaigning and had to petition for the release of Emmy Freundlich when she was imprisoned by the National Socialists in Austria. After the war the Guild turned its attention to the plight of women in poorer countries. For a fuller administrative history and a bibliography of the Women's Cooperative Guild see the Guide entry under Organisations.

From the guide to the Miscellaneous Papers of the Women's Cooperative Guild (Hull Branch), 1941-1968, (Hull University, Brynmor Jones Library)

...