Women's History Month 2025: High Achievers at Dunoon Grammar School

5 hours ago6 min read

Today is International Women’s Day! This day aims to celebrate and uplift the achievements of women across the globe- both now and in the past. An International Women’s Day celebration was held here in Dunoon as far back as 1946 in Dunoon’s Imperial Hall, near where Chilli Grillz is located now. This was hosted by prominent Scottish suffrage activist Helen Crawfurd Anderson, who was also Dunoon’s first female councillor.

In honour of this day we have delved into the archives to try and piece together the lives of three impressive pupils who attended Dunoon Grammar School at the turn of the century- Jeanie Stewart Oswald, Elizabeth Rowat Haddow, and Catherine Campbell Weir. They attended school and university at a time of great social upheaval, when backlash against female students was rife. Female students were only allowed to graduate from universities following the Universities (Scotland) Act of 1889, which came into force in 1892. Although these women must have come from positions of privilege in order to have the time to devote themselves to their studies in this way, their academic abilities were often developed in the face of this prejudice.

Dunoon Grammar School was the subject of praise in the early twentieth century for the equality afforded to female and male students in the subjects that they studied. This has been attributed to Mr William Dock, who became headmaster in 1895. Dunoon-born suffragette Arabella Scott reflected on Dock’s supportive nature in her memoir, stating that he was ‘broadminded’ in his outlook on female education and worked to assist in ‘advancing the rights of women.’ Around this time one of Scotland’s first female graduates, Charlotte Elizabeth Tweedie, was appointed at the school.

This in turn made her one of Scotland’s first female teachers. Charlotte had studied at Edinburgh’s Ladies College on the city’s Queen Street for three years, and had achieved top marks in Algebra, German, English, Composition, Arithmetic, Geometry, and English. She was awarded a £38 scholarship, the equivalent of £4,000 in today’s money. She enrolled at the University of Edinburgh in 1892, and was allowed to graduate the following year with a handful of others due to her impressive academic abilities. She graduated with an MA in 1893 aged just 18. During her time as a teacher at Dunoon Grammar School she was responsible for instruction in English, French, German and Mathematics. A report from the Inspector of Schools noted that ‘Mr Dock’s skill and energy are everywhere apparent, and ably supported by Miss Tweedie, the efficacy of the instruction given is proven by the exceptional success of the scholars [...] and by the numbers of Leaving Certificates gained last year.’ I think it is fair to say that Charlotte’s addition to the staff at this crucial time will have inspired female students within the school. Read on to find out more about their exceptional achievements!

Jeanie Stewart Oswald

Jeanie was born to William and Esther Oswald in May 1884 at their house on Dunoon’s Ferry Brae. Her father is listed on Jeanie’s birth certificate as a ‘master grocer,’ and was a partner in the family business of ‘Archibald Oswalds and Sons,’ with branches at Kirn, Dunoon, and Sandbank. They often entered agricultural shows with their prizewinning butter and cake! Her grandfather Archibald had also served as the Town Provost from 1878 to 1882, and purchased Dunoon’s iconic Argyll Hotel in 1870. Her father later started his own grocer business, advertised below.

Once Jeanie had reached Grammar School age, the family had moved to Jane Villa on Sandbank’s Cromlech Road, where she lived with her parents and elder sister Margaret. Margaret was just three years older than Jeanie, and won awards during her own time at Dunoon Grammar for her skills in Model Drawing, French, German, English Composition, and Bookkeeping and General Arithmetic. She also won the Younger Prize for English in 1899, presented by James Younger of Benmore. It is clear that Jeanie followed in her elder sister’s footsteps. In 1896 she received the top marks in her year group, and over the following years was also awarded prizes in Inorganic Chemistry, French, Drawing, English Composition, Maths, German, French, and Arithmetic. She also achieved an award from London Trinity College for her Pianoforte skills. She also received a Bursary from the Highland and Islands Education Trust in 1900, which allowed her to take part in classes at the University of Glasgow. In 1901 Jeanie was awarded the William Hunter prize, which was given out each school year to the female student with the highest marks. Her academic achievements at Dunoon Grammar prepared her for success at the University of Glasgow. Her Matriculation Slips from 1903 to 1906 sessions show that Jeanie studied French, Logic, Education, Latin, Mathematics, Natural Philosophy and English during her time there. It was reported back in the Dunoon Grammar School prospectus that she had achieved top marks in her classes on Logic and Metaphysics and English Literature. Jeanie graduated with an MA on 14th April 1906, and achieved departmental certificates in English Literature and Natural Philosophy. This picture below shows her on graduation day.

Elizabeth Rowat Haddow

Also known as ‘Bessie,’ Elizabeth was born in Lanark in 1884. Her family soon moved to Dunoon’s Auchamore Road, living in a home known to them as Carmona Bank. She stayed here with her mother and two siblings. This move possibly came after the death of her father, who was a metal merchant. Her time at Dunoon Grammar School was also one of outstanding success. She received an award in 1896 for being one of the ‘best scholars in Standard VI.’ Her other achievements included high marks in English, Composition, French, Latin Inorganic Chemistry, Bookkeeping and Commercial Arithmetic, as well as winning the Gold Medal for German in 1900. During this same year she won the bursary from the Highland and Islands Education Trust, which was valued at £7 and 10s a year for three years. Her incredible academic achievements across the board were rewarded with the William Hunter Prize during her final year of school in 1901, being the highest-ranking female student in her cohort. Elizabeth was also offered the esteemed position of working an assistant teacher at the primary school, most likely in the infant department. She is also listed as a teacher in her 1901 census entry. This would have allowed her to financially contribute to the running of the household, being now part of a single parent family.

Following on from this success, Elizabeth went on to study at the University of Glasgow and was in the same student group as Jeanie. Her Matriculation slips for this time show that Elizabeth studied Latin, Mathematics, French, Logic, and Education, Natural Philosophy and English. She was noted in the Dunoon Grammar Prospectus as excelling in Logic and Metaphysics at University. As she had worked as a school assistant, she completed a summer course in education and was awarded a first class certificate. Elizabeth graduated with an MA on 14th April 1906. Her story is difficult to track after this point, but she is thought to have settled in Lanark. Here she is on her graduation day.

Catherine Campbell Weir

Catherine was one of eight children born to coal merchant James Weir and her mother, also called Catherine. She grew up on Dunoon’s Ferry Brae, and the family later moved to John Street in an area then called Albany Place. She attended Dunoon Grammar School at the same time as both Jeanie and Elizabeth, and also achieved recognition during her time there. She won a prize for being the top scoring student in Senior VI in 1897, and also was presented with awards in Arithmetic, French, Bookkeeping, English, Mathematics and German as well as the Gold Medal for Writing. She was awarded a prize in the Highland and Islands Bursary Competition in 1900, also won in that same year by Jeanie and Elizabeth. Out of the 21 competitors from across Argyll Jeanie came third, Elizabeth seventh, and Catherine eighth.

The following year she won the Gold Medal for German, as well as the Younger Prize for English and Prize for English Composition. She worked as a pupil teacher in 1901. Her younger sister Jessie went on to follow in her footsteps, becoming a pupil teacher a few years later once Catherine had left for Edinburgh. Catherine then studied at the University of Edinburgh, where she was awarded departmental certificates in Latin, French, Natural Philosophy, and German. Catherine graduated in 1906, and later worked as a school teacher. She appears to have moved to England once she was married in 1921. It is thought that Catherine moved back to Dunoon once she was widowed at a young age. She passed away at Belmont House in Edward Street aged just 53. Here she is on her graduation day in 1906.

These stories make up only a few pieces of the rich tapestry of the history of female trailblazers from our town. Castle House Museum reopens on the 1st of April, why not pay us a visit?

We are also always on the lookout for more stories from the past which will help us diversify our knowledge about women's history in our town. Often the tales which have been documented omit the experiences of working class women and women of colour. If you feel you can help with this, please get in touch at info@castlehousemuseum.org.uk.