10th November 2024 marked the centenary of Eva Hartree becoming the first female mayor of Cambridge. Hartree – our project’s namesake – led a remarkable life and overcame many societal barriers to be elected as Cambridge’s first female mayor in 1924.
Eva Hartree had a strong sense of duty, involved with organisations such as the British Red Cross Society and the Woman’s Suffrage Society before being elected as a Cambridge Borough Councillor in 1921. Hartree impressed her fellow councillors with her hard work, knowledge of a range of social issues, regular attendance, and diligence.
Her work as a councillor paved the way for her election as mayor in 1924. In her first mayoral address, she highlighted the importance of the work of town planning committees in local government following new legislation enacted by Parliament following the horrors of the First World War. She said that councillors in Cambridge had a responsibility to future generations to ensure that the mistakes of previous generations were not repeated due to an absence of town planning, something that she had experienced growing up in Stockport.
After retiring from public life for 3 years due to illness, Hartree returned to serve as a councillor from 1929-1943. 100 years on from Hartree’s election as mayor, we are delighted to be carrying forward her progressive legacy through the name of a new district in North East Cambridge.
Through a collaborative process in 2022, local residents and stakeholders were able to meaningfully influence the outcome of our name. A shortlist was generated through co-creation workshops with local students, businesses, residents and community representatives, as well as engagement with students from Cambridge Regional College and our own research to understand the history of the area.
The shortlist was reviewed by the Ideas Exchange – a focus group that is demographically representative of the surrounding area of the Hartree site – and the group of students who had done the original research. From that feedback, four names were selected for a public vote that offered members of the local community the opportunity to select the final name. In-person voting took place at the People City Planet Festival in October 2022 and via the Roadshow, supported by online advertising, with the chosen name a fitting tribute to Eva Hartree.
We are grateful to Antony Carpen for providing us with information on Eva Hartree for this blog.