Understanding the long history of women in engineering
This blog post focuses on the life and work of Henrietta Vansittart (1833-1883) who held the patent for the Lowe-Vansittart propeller. This propeller was widely used in the Royal Navy’s ships and was awarded a first class diploma at the Kensington exhibition in 1871. A model of the propeller is held by the Science Museum Group. So why don’t we know more about her fascinating life?
In the field of model engineering, women remain under-represented, so the long and successful career of top modeller Cherry Hill, who has won many awards and accolades for her work, deserves to be highlighted. Especially because, despite her reputation within the model engineering community, Cherry Hill is almost unknown outside the community. This guest blog by Geoff Theasby tells her story.
How did one of Germany’s very first female engineers end up working in Britain during World War 2? The little-known story of Ira Rischowski is certainly not one of espionage. Hers is instead a drama of escape from Nazi persecution and narrowing opportunities until she was able to join the UK’s Women’s Engineering Society (WES).