BFWI History

DISPLAY CASE

BFWI History

First BFWI Meeting 1919

First BFWI Meeting 1919

Date: 1919 | Reference: D/EX2007/2/1

Here we see the first Executive Committee minutes of the BFWI showing Mrs Morrell as Chairman.

Whilst the BFWI began in 1919, the first Women’s Institute (WI) in Berkshire was started in Hurst in 1916. This was just one year after the first WI meeting in Britain which was held in Llanfairpwll in Anglesey, Wales. In 2015, the National Federation of WIs celebrated its own centenary.

The origins of the Women’s Institute (WI) began in Ontario, Canada in 1897 as a branch of the Farmer’s Institute. The WI brought together women from isolated areas, offering training and advice in home economics, child care and farming activities.

From the outset, the Federation and its WIs aimed to educate rural women, to help the war effort and to share and learn new skills.

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