1 THERE is a statue of Mary Barbour at Govan Cross, the result of a long fight by Labour MP Maria Fyfe and the Govan community to have this legendary figure of the 1915 Rent Strike recognised in all her glory. Designed by Andrew Brown, the statue celebrates Mary in her element on the day in November, 104 years ago this week, when she led a 20,000-strong protest through the streets of Glasgow to the Sheriff Court.
2 MARY campaigned to improve housing and conditions for working people, exposing and protesting against the greedy landlords who took advantage of the wartime economy to hike up rents for workers. The reaction was swift and furious, with many tenants refusing to pay. Landlords tried to evict them, but a co-ordinated response by Glasgow’s women, who became known as ‘Mrs Barbour’s Army’, ensured bailiff’s officers were thwarted at every turn. The city-wide rallies and demonstrations forced a change in the Government’s rent legislation.
3 ELECTED as one of the first female councillors for Glasgow in 1920, Mary was also appointed the first woman Bailie of the City of Glasgow in 1924. Although not born in the city – she was from Kilbarchan in Renfrewshire – she made it her home, living in Govan with her husband David, an iron turner on the Fairfield shipyards, and her two sons.
4 IN her role as a city councillor, Mary fought for free school milk, children’s playgrounds, municipal wash-houses, and an end to slum housing.
5 GLASGOW now has a Mary Barbour Award – the winner of the first one in 2016 was Anna Stuart MBE, founder of Cassiltoun Housing Association.
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