Margaret McIntyre

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Margaret Edgeworth David McIntyre OBE (28 November 1886 – 2 September 1948) was the first woman elected to the Parliament of Tasmania (Australia), representing the seat of Cornwall in the Legislative Council.

Margaret was born in Sydney, her parents, Sir Tannatt Edgeworth David, a geologist and Antarctic explorer and Caroline Martha David a teacher, had moved to Australia in 1882. She was encouraged to become educated and studied for a Bachelor of Arts at the University of Sydney, graduating in 1907.

She married Dr. William Keverall McIntyre in 1908, and they moved to Tasmania where he set up medical practice. The couple had four children.

Margaret was widely involved in the community, for these services she was awarded an OBE in 1948. Her activities included serving as the State Commissioner for Girl Guides, she served on the board of the Queen Victoria Hospital, the ABC advisory committee, she was the vice-president of the Young Women’s Christian Association (YWCA). She was also involved in the establishment of the Brooks Community School in Launceston, and ran a youth drama group.

In 1948 she was elected as an independent candidate for the seat of Cornwall, becoming the first women on the Tasmanian Legislative Council. Six months after her election she was killed in a plane crash near Tamworth on 2 September 1948, aged 61, returning from a National Council of Women of Australia Conference.