Edith Smith (police officer)

Edith Smith
Born 1880
Died 1924 (age 44)
Cause of death morphia overdose
Nationality British
Occupation constable, midwife
Employer Women's Police Service, Grantham, South Kesteven, Lincolnshire, England, United Kingdom
Known for Being the first policewoman in the United Kingdom in 1915

Edith Smith (1880-1924) was the first female police officer in the United Kingdom with full power of arrest.

Early life

Smith was born in 1880.[1]

Career

The Women's Police Service, founded in 1914 by Nina Boyle and Margaret Damer Dawson, was staffed by volunteers.[2] In August 1915, Edith Smith was appointed the first woman police constable in England with full power of arrest.[3] Her duties were to deal with cases where women were involved. She was concerned with trying to reduce the number of prostitutes in Grantham who were attracted there by the nearby army base.[4]

Until January 1919, Smith was the matron nurse at Lindis Nursing Home, Dudley Road in Grantham where she worked seven days a week.

The work in Grantham was contentious for the Women's Police Service as Boyle felt that women should not be punished with a curfew when men were at fault. After disagreeing, Boyle left the service and Dawson reformed the service with herself as head.[2]

Retirement and death

blue plaque honoring Smith at the Grantham Guildhall

Smith left the service after working seven days a week for a period of two years. She died after she took an overdose of morphia in 1924, five years after leaving the force. Her life is commemorated in Grantham Museum.[4]

See also

References

  1. ↑ History, oldpolicecellsmuseum, Retrieved 28 April 2017
  2. 1 2 History of Met Women, MetWPA.org.uk, retrieved 31 July 2014
  3. ↑ Kelly, Kay (2012-11-27). "First police women in UK". Grantham People. Archived from the original on 2014-02-23. Retrieved 2014-02-11.
  4. 1 2 "Town remembers first policewoman". BBC. 2006-01-13. Retrieved 2014-02-11.
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