Female Firsts on the Underground
Trailblazers accelerating action for gender equality! Let us introduce you to some of our pioneering Underground women.
London Tube Diagram of Lines Reverse Side (1979-03-15) by London Transport ExecutiveTfL Corporate Archives
Our journey through "female firsts" on the underground begins in the 50s and 60s with women showing what they were capable of, even if the workplace wasn't quite ready to open up new network roles to take advantage of their skills.
1. Mrs Olive Robinson, clerk at Lillie Bridge, Aug 1957
Olive took the permanent way exam, an examination on the maintenance and inspection of railway infrastructure, after attending voluntary classes out of "curiosity." She became the first woman to pass with a merit.
2. Mrs Mary Doolan "Top Woman in a Man's World," Nov 1967
Mary was a booking clerk when she sat the railway voluntary class exam, not only passing with distinction but coming top of the class.
The exam, "...covers all the administrative duties of a stationmaster"
3. Margaret Gardner, Underground Train Guard, Jan 1977
Margaret became the first woman train guard when she started work at the back of a Bakerloo line train. Her son Paul, also a guard, reflects some of the opposition she faced "originally I was against her, or any other woman, becoming a guard."
4. Hannah Dadds, First Female Tube Driver, Oct 1978
One of our most famous faces Hannah qualified as the first female tube driver in October 1978. Her sister Edna worked with her as a guard, forming London Transport’s first all-woman crew.
5. Susan Atyeo, first signalwoman, Aug 1979
"I passed first time"
6. Kathy Clabby, Stationmaster, Aug 1983
It is a full 16 years after Mary Doolan passed her railway exam before we welcome the first female station master to the network.
Photograph of Jeanne Gill from an Article on East London Line Refurbishment (1980-03-14)TfL Corporate Archives
7. Jeanne Hardy, Train Instructor, 1984
Jeanne became the first female training instructor in 1984 though sadly we cannot find this recorded in internal publicity at the time.
Museum Gallery Reopens (1989-02-01)TfL Corporate Archives
She went on to become one of the first batch of female centurion group station managers when she took on management of the Piccadilly and Regents Park Group of Stations in February 1989.
Article on New Management Structure for London Underground Lines (1988-11-11)TfL Corporate Archives
8. Ann Blackburn, General Manager Jubilee Line, Nov 1988
Ann was appointed alongside 9 male colleagues as part of a management reorganisation.
During her four years on the Jubilee line she made a lasting impression on its fabric by overseeing the sympathetic restoration of St John’s Wood and Stanmore Stations in 1990 and Gloucester Road Station won a Railway Heritage under her stewardship of the District Line in 1993.
9. Jill Postlethwaite, signal technician, May 1994
Jill became the first woman in the country to obtain a competency license by the Institution of Railway Signal Engineers in May 1994.
10. Nadine Coleman, Emergency Response Unit, June 1997
Nadine together with Jane Butt became the first women to work in the Emergency Response Unit Operations in June 1997.
11. Joan Saunders-Reece, a pocketful of firsts
Joan, seen here with her team as the First Woman Manager of the Emergency Response Unit in 1997, also holds the title of first female train operator on the Victoria line and first female fleet instructor.
City of Women Tube Map (2022-03-08)TfL Corporate Archives
Celebrating women who have been the first to reach a milestone is only the beginning of the story. With this introduction we hope to inspire you to visit us, use our archives and take this research to the next level.
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