Jessie Kirk

Jessie Lennox Kirk (1877 — 2 December 1965) was a Canadian alderwoman. In 1920, Kirk became the first ever woman to be elected in the Winnipeg City Council. After her defeat in 1922, she ran for re-election multiple times from the 1920s to 1940s but did not win back her seat. Apart from her municipal career, Kirk was the nominee of the Dominion Labour Party for the 1920 Manitoba general election but was replaced due to a desire by the party leadership to nominate imprisoned leaders of the Winnipeg general strike.

Early life and education In 1877, Kirk was born in Chesterfield, England into a family with ten siblings. For her post-secondary education, she trained as a student-teacher in Derbyshire before going to Kingston College on a scholarship.

Career Kirk began her career as a teacher when she and her family moved to Canada after World War I. During the 1910s, she taught in Lockport, Manitoba before teaching at multiple schools in Winnipeg. While teaching, she went into politics as a member of a labour council. In 1918, Kirk was informed that she no longer had a job as a teacher. She was given back her job when the labour council she was on objected to her firing. In 1920, Kirk was selected as the nominee for the Dominion Labour Party at the Manitoba general election. However, she was replaced due to the Winnipeg general strike.

After losing her seat in the 1922 municipal election, Kirk subsequently ran for re-election multiple times throughout the 1920s and 1930s. She ran with the Conservative Women’s League and failed to win back her seat.

Death Kirk died on 2 December 1965.