Temporary blue plaques for historic Macclesfield women
Six historic Macclesfield women have been honoured this month with blue plaques dotted across town.
All of the temporary plaques lie between The Silk Museum (on Park Lane) and Waters Green, the former of which helped the project come to life.
The celebration of the unsung heroines of 'Women's Town' was a collaboration with guerrilla art project Rosie's Plaques.
Rosie's Plaques create alternative blue plaques for leading women from past and present, whose achievements may have been overlooked or
forgotten.
The team, who dress as Rosie the Riveter, (an allegorical character representing the women who worked in factories during World War II) create the plaques from an adapted caravan.
The six women the team have honoured with plaques across town this June include:
Marianne Brocklehurst and Mary Booth: collectively known as the MBs. They were partners in life and travel, leading excavations in Egypt bringing the ancient world to Macclesfield.
Edith Buxton: a silk designer and working-class woman who went from silk worker to Head Designer at Barracks Print Mill, aged just 25.
Ellen Beech and Ann Osboston who were hanged after the 1656 Michaelmas Assizes at Chester accused of witchcraft from "'which wicked and devilish acts certain people of Rainow
fell ill and died'.
Beryl Footman, former headmistress of Macclesfield High School for Girls as well as a leading force in setting up Silk Heritage Trust and the museums.
Hester Ann Roe, Methodist writer and preacher, part of Macclesfield's history of non-conformism. Hester was the niece of Charles Roe and was in regular correspondence with John Wesley.
Margaret Moborn, the Huguenot weaver from Spitalfields in London who came to Macclesfield around 1790 to teach silk weaving. The Museum claims 'Macclesfield would not be famous for silk weaving without her'. She resided on Sunderland Street for many years.
Nicola Turner from Rosie's Plaques explains: "Just 12% of the UK's heritage plaques are dedicated to non-mythical or non-royal women.
"This project aims to redress this balance. We create the plaques and then we try and find suitable locations for them.
"It is a way of raising awareness of the contributions that women have made to society or to maybe highlight social injustices."
While these new Macc plaques are to be taken down in July, there are hopes that councillors will select to honour a Macclesfield woman in this way in the near future.
Ailsa Holland is writer and artist from Macclesfield worked with Rosie's Plaques to bring the project here.
"We want to start a conversation about the way we remember women in Macclesfield, and who is acknowledged for their achievements," she said.
"Maybe this could be the start of more permanent memorials for these incredible people."
"Macclesfield was known as 'women's town' in the 20th century because of the high number of women employed in the silk industry. It feels fitting that we shine a light on some of the achievements of women."
The Silk Museum prides itself on sharing Macclesfield's three centuries as a worldwide centre for silk production. You can find more about Macclesfield Museums by clicking here.
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