Margaret Damer Dawson

Margaret Mary Damer Dawson OBE (12 June 1873 – 18 May 1920) was a prominent anti-vivisectionist and philanthropist who co-founded the first British women's police service.

Dawson was born on 12 June 1873 to a rich family in Hove. Her father died and her mother remarried to become Lady Walsingham. Her step-father was Thomas de Grey, 6th Baron Walsingham. Margaret had a private income. She studied music with the Austrian pianist Benno Schoenberger at the London Academy of Music. Dawson got involved in anti-vivisection and other good causes and she founded a home for foundlings. She was awarded silver medals by Finland and Denmark for her campaigning work for animal rights. Margaret was Honorary Secretary of the International Anti-Vivisection Council set up in 1908 by Lizzy Lind af Hageby, and they organized between them the International Anti-Vivisection and Animal Protection Congress in London in July 1909. As Honorary Organizing Secretary of the Animal Defence and Anti-Vivisection Society. This organisation campaigned against obvious cruelty and the socially acceptable circus performing animals and the slaughter of animals for meat.

Before the first World War it had been proposed by those interested in women's rights that there should be female as well as male Police officers. The war prevented any progress but a volunteer service was established by Damer Dawson and Nina Boyle. They had met when Damer Dawson was working for the Criminal Law Amendment Committee in 1914. They joined forces after seeing the trouble faced by refugees during the war. It was Nina Boyle who led the organisation with Dawson as assistant. Damer Dawson had been made aware that Belgian women were being recruited as prostitutes when they arrived at British railway stations. These volunteer women were allowed to officially patrol the streets of London and policemen were asked to assist them. These "Women Police Volunteers" were trained and they were intended to assist women during the turmoil of the war.

Boyle was of the view that the new organisation should assist in catching criminals, whereas the role that was being created for the force was to enforce the Defence of the Realm Act and to supervise female workers and public decency. Damer Dawson and Boyle parted over a problem in Grantham when the women police were asked to enforce a curfew on women to protect the men from the temptations of prostitutes. In August 1915, Edith Smith was appointed the first woman police constable in England with full power of arrest.

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