Our Story

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Our Story: The Former Pupils Guild 1884 - present

One evening in December 1884, a small group of young women met in the home of one of them at 57 Albany Street to form an Association which has grown from these modest beginnings, to a membership of over three thousand scattered throughout the world.

They appointed a committee and declared their aims which were:

To encourage united work and a feeling of sympathy.
To urge members to undertake a definite course.
To inform of ways in which they could assist others.

As the idea of higher education for girls was novel and stimulating, it is not surprising that "a definite course of study" to be pursued after schooldays was such a serious aim of these early former pupils. An annual Social was soon an established and popular event. The intention had been to confine membership to those who had been pupils at The Edinburgh Educational Institution between 1870 and 1876 but the infant Guild found that” it was in danger of dying of exclusiveness” and with some misgivings, it opened its doors in1891 to all who had attended the Edinburgh Ladies College, as the Institution had been renamed.

To celebrate its Jubilee in 1935, the Guild held a ball, a luncheon and a service of thanksgiving in St. Giles. In 1984, the Guild celebrated its Centenary with a series of events designed to involve as many members as possible, and to strengthen the links with the School and the Merchant Company. These included the Annual Dinner, an Informal Evening at Gladstone’s Land with a concert of music from Mary Erskine’s day, a large attendance at Founders’ Day Service and the handing over by their President of the Heather Garden, the Guild’s gift to the School. The Summer Reunion at Ravelston, the Mary Erskine Memorial Service at Greyfriars and a Tea Party at the North British Hotel attracted large numbers.

Presidents of the Guild

MISS MASSON	1884 - 1886
MRS STEEL	1886 - 1888
MISS AIMERS	1888 - 1894
MRS B J STEEL	1894 - 1896
MISS AGNES JOHNSTON	1896 - 1899
MISS ELIZABETH ANDERSON	1899 - 1901
MISS AGNES JOHNSTON	1901 - 1903
MRS ISABELLA H POLE	1903 - 1905
MRS ALICE M ASHER	1905 - 1907
MISS HELEN BOWACK	1907 - 1909
MISS JANE DARLING	1909 - 1911
MRS GEORGINA S SPEARS	1911 - 1913
MRS JEANNIE YOUNG	1913 - 1914
MISS SARA MUNRO	1914 - 1917
MISS MARGARET ROBERTSON	1917 - 1919
MISS MARY G WILLIAMSON	1919 - 1921
MISS MARY TWEEDIE	1921 - 1923
MISS MARGARET B ROBERSTON	1923 - 1925
MISS ELIZABETH K ROBERTSON	1925 - 1927
MRS CECIL BARTLEMAN	1927 - 1928
MRS EFFIE BALLANTINE	1928 - 1930
DR MARIAN ERSKINE	1930 - 1932
MISS LENIE WILKIE	1932 - 1934
BEATRICE CAMPBELL	1934 - 1936
JESSIE RODGER PETTIGREW	1936 - 1938
ETHEL M. McCUBBING	1938 - 1941
ELIZABETH GLOVERe text	1941 - 1943
JEAN GAULDIE	1943 - 1945
JOANNE F. THOMSON (died in office)	1945 - 1947
WINIFRED M. SIMPSON	1947 - 1949
ANNE REDMAN	1949 - 1951
JANET L. BORTHWICK	1951 - 1953
M. J. HOWAT	1953 - 1955
MARY C. LINDSAY	1955 - 1957
BARBARA M. HENDERSON	1957 - 1959
GLADYS M. J. WRIGHT	1959 - 1961
CATHERINE M. BURT	1961 - 1963
CHRISTINA LUMSDEN	1963 - 1965
ELIZABETH SOPHIA McEWAN	1965 - 1967
CAROLINE BATT	1967 - 1969
JESSIE WILLIAMSON	1969 - 1971
MARY AMBROSE	1971 - 1973
MARGARET HUME	1973 - 1975
MARY PARNABY	1975 - 1977
MONA SMITH	1977 - 1979
ANNE WILSON	1979 - 1981
JOAN W. BASSETT	1981 - 1983
JOAN PAPE	1983 - 1985
SYBIL BLAIR	1985 - 1987
CHRISTINE PEGGIE	1987 - 1989
EDITH MARTIN	1989 - 1991
AUDREY LAWRENCE	1991 - 1994
ANNE EVERETT	1994 - 1995
ALYSON K. RINTOUL	1995 - 1997
SHONA FORREST	1997 - 1999
CHRISTINE COLLINGWOOD	1999 - 2001
LYN MITCHELL	2001 - 2003
OLIVE SKINNER	2003 - 2006
PAT TULLOCH	2006 - 2008
NOËL PROVEN	2008 - 2010
MARGARET ALLAN	2010 - 2012
SUSAN MURRAY	2012 - 2015
RACHEL SNEDDON	2015 – 2018
CLAIRE CUNNINGHAM	2018 -

Branch Clubs

Please contact our Guild Coordinator for more information on our Branch Clubs

The Aberdeen branch are actively looking for new members and we would be delighted to hear from you if you live in the Aberdeen area.

Please contact Sam Roger, our Guild Coordinator, in the first instance and we will put you in touch with other members from the Aberdeen area.

Nancy Noble presides over a lively bunch of FPs who meet up several times each year to represent the Borders, most often for lunch in Galashiels.

The Highland branch is a firmly established branch, meeting up for lunch in Inverness in the spring and the autumn. Sheila Crosbie organises the venue with help from the Guild Office for publicising the events.

Tayside Branch still has a President and Secretary and holds an AGM and Annual Dinner as well as a number of informal lunches throughout the year.

Venues are mostly in either Perth or Dundee. Now firmly established, this group targets the 25-60 age group and offers the chance for working FPs to network in an informal setting. Quarterly events alternate between lunch in the city centre and evening functions. Please register your email address with the Guild Office if you would like to be put on our mailing list

A small group which meets up twice a year for lunch. Sheila Booth would love to hear from other MES FPs in the Manchester area so that she can pass on details of the events.

Sports Clubs

Information coming soon on our sports clubs including Golf, Hockey and Curling.

2019 Presidents Lunch