Trailblazing Women of Industrial Revolution

We hear a lot about the contribution men made to the brave new world which began to emerge in the mid-18th century with the start of the Industrial Revolution; and we can read the uplifting story of the hundreds of thousands of women who clocked on at the mills, mines and factories to resolutely power that revolution or who provided the domestic service to support it 24/7.

But a lot less has been written or researched on the women who were just as instrumental and important as the factory- owning men and politicians in these momentous developments and changes to our social and industrial fabric: these were the innovative and empowered women who pioneered developments in engineering and science, business, nursing, pharmacy and medicine, education and literature, music, art, politics and women’s rights, labour law and the trade unions, philanthropy and entrepreneurship.

This book changes that great cover up, that virtual erasing of many women from our social and industrial history: Trailblazing Women Empowered in the Industrial Revolution is the rarely told story of 200 or so of these women, some familiar, but most, at best, languishing until now in the obscure and obfuscating footnotes of British history.

This is the story of how those 200 women, and others, helped power the Industrial Revolution and change British society and labour relations for ever. The long and inspirational battle waged by ambitious, enlightened and innovative women of colour is also examined – it was hard enough for them to endure the near ubiquitous male discrimination, sexism, and sexual violence they shared with other women but add in racism and you have a much bigger challenge to your determination to flourish and success.

This deeply researched, entertaining and revelatory history of women in the time of industrial and societal revolution is one of the first to guide readers through one of the most crucial times in the history of women, women and work, women in the professions, women and the vote and the juggling they did to change British society forever and lay the foundation for the more equable society we all live and work in today. There is, of course, still much more to do: more action and fewer words…