Constance Hamilton

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Constance Easton Hamilton (1862 – 1945) was the first woman member of Toronto City Council. In fact, she was the very first woman in Ontario to hold elected office at either the federal, provincial, or municipal level (one year before Agnes MacPhail).

Born in Yorkshire, England in 1862, she immigrated to Canada with her family in 1888. A supporter of women's suffrage, she became president of the Equal Franchise League of Toronto. In 1919, women obtained the right to run for elected office in Ontario. Previously they had been barred, by law, from doing so. Hamilton ran for Toronto city council and was elected for a one-year term in 1920. She was re-elected for another one-year term in 1921.

After two terms in office she resigned so that she could continue to campaign for immigrant settlement and refugee issues, and for equal rights.

In 1979, city council established the Constance E. Hamilton Award on the Status of Women. The award is made annually chosen by the women members of city council. To qualify, a recipient must be a resident of Toronto whose actions have had a significant impact on securing equitable treatment for women in Toronto, either socially, economically or culturally.