Edith Johnston

Edith Mary Johnston aka Edith Mary Johnston-Liik (11 July 1930 – 25 February 2008) was a historian and editor. She was the first female St. Andrews PhD student to go on to an academic career. She served on the board which created the Dictionary of Irish Biography.

Biography Johnston was born 11 July 1930 in Belfast, the eldest of three daughters born to John Worthington Johnston (1904–52), an athlete, Presbyterian minister, and army chaplain, and his wife Mary Isobel Giraud (born McFadden). The University of St Andrews awarded her a first class honours degree in Medieval and Modern History in 1951 and she additionally studied Philosophy and Latin. Alongside her position at Sheffield, Johnston also held visiting posts at the University of Michigan, Queens University (Ontario) and the University of Delaware. In 1976, Johnston became a Professor and Chair of Modern History at Macquarie University in Sydney, Australia. Her husband and fellow historian, George Liik, was also a member of staff at Macquirie. During her retirement, Johnston was on the Board of Editors for the Dictionary of Irish Biography. Unfortunately, she did not live to see its publication in November 2009.

Johnston died in Ards Hospital, Newtownards, County Down, on 25 February 2008 and was buried at the Presbyterian church in Ballygawley, County Tyrone.

Selected publications

Ireland in the Eighteenth Century (1974) A Measure of Greatness: the Origins of the Australian Iron and Steel Industry (1998) The History of the Irish Parliament 1692–1800 (2002)