Elsie achieved many firsts in science & engineering at a time when women were still considered to be inferior in the sciences. In 1923, at the age of nineteen, she became the first woman to attend engineering classes at the University of Toronto.
Her life spanned much of the 20th century. Elsie became a popular heroine of her time and inspired the creation of the comic book "Queen of the Hurricanes" in the 1940s, urging young girls to move forward and seek higher education. In later life she became a powerful feminist activist.
Elsie's twin passions for engineering and feminism drove her throughout her life. They caused her to work for more than fifty years in her field and to become a tireless advocate for women's rights. She supported women's struggles, their rights and achievements. She continued her dedication into the 1970s as an activist, changing the lives of women in Canada for the better.
Elsie was the first woman to earn a master's degree in aeronautical engineering in 1929. She was also the first practicing Canadian woman engineer. With her educational credentials well in hand, she should have been able to jump right into the fast-paced evolution of the aeronautical field, and she probably would have, had it not been for a sudden battle with polio just as she finished her courses. Instead of celebrating her educational and professional achievement, Elsie was struggling simply to get back on her feet.
To her credit, Elsie was not prone to giving up. Despite her physical challenges, she kept drafting and writing articles on aviation including publications in Chatelaine and Vogue. And, when she felt strong enough, she started post-graduate studies at the Michigan Institute for Technology, before accepting a job at Fairchild Aircraft Limited in the Montreal area. This was an important opportunity, and it was a job offer in the middle of the Great Depression!
This led to a new job offer as its Chief Aeronautical Engineer in 1938 at Canadian Car and Foundry in Fort William, Ontario (now Thunder Bay, Ontario). Just before leaving Montreal, Elsie accomplished another important professional first – membership in the Engineering Institute of Canada (EIC). With the support of key men from the University of Toronto and her professional network, she became the EIC's first woman member, and a passionate and dedicated member at that.
