Chapter 3: William Ramsay: A ‘Women Chemists Welcome’ Research Lab Check Access

William Ramsay is rightly remembered for his contributions to inorganic chemistry, particularly the discovery of the noble gases. However, long overlooked has been his advocacy and support for women chemists. Ramsay took on many women students, including Katherine Williams, Emily Aston, Kate Burke, Ida Homfray, Dorothy Marshall, Clare de Brereton Evans, and Frances Chick. His students were given equal authorship on publications, or, most frequently, permitted to publish under their name alone. In addition, it was Ramsay who took over, from Vernon Harcourt, the fight for the admission of women chemists to the Chemical Society.