The Women's Institute

Description

When the first Women's Institute was formed in Llanfair, Wales in October 1915, no one could have foreseen how this small-scale experiment would grow to become, by the early twenty-first century, an organisation with a membership of approximately 205,000 in 6,500 branches in towns, cities and villages across Britain. The organization instilled a new and enterprising spirit into the life of villages and their womenfolk, and gave them unique opportunities to share activities. This book traces the story and evolution of the WI: through the decades punctuated by two world wars, where food preservation and handicrafts, drama groups and choirs, charabanc outings and running market stalls were the mainstays of the organization, to the new challenges and opportunities which unite members in the twenty-first century.

Susan Cohen is a social historian with a special interest in the Victorian and Edwardian eras. She was awarded a PhD for her work on the campaigner for women's rights, Eleanor Rathbone, and she is an Honorary Fellow of the Parkes Institute at Southampton University. She has written 'The District Nurse' for Shire.