Famous Canadian Women's Famous Firsts

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The names appearing below are just a fraction of the Canadian women of accomplishment. Check out The Famous Canadian Women 's section ON THE JOB which contains mini profiles of 1000 Canadian Women of Achievement.

Military Leaders

Elizabeth Lawrie Smellie. Born Port Arthur (Thunder Bay), Ontario March 22, 1884. Died March 5, 1968. A nurse who served in both world wars. She was a builder of the Victoria Order of Nurses, helping it to become a nationwide organization and was its chief superintendent from 1923-1947. She was granted leave from the VON to serve as matron in chief in the Royal Canadian Army Medical Corp from 1941 till 1955. In 1941 she laid the foundations for the establishment of the Canadian Women’s Army Corps. In 1944 she was the first woman to become a colonel in the Canadian Army.

Jean Flatt Davey . Died March 13, 1980. She Graduated as a medical doctor from the University of Toronto in 1936. She was the first Canadian woman doctor to enter the Canadian Armed Forces. From 1941-1945 she served in the Royal Canadian Air Force as squadron leader forming a unit that provided medical care. For her war time services she was awarded the Order of the British Empire in 1943. After the war she became the first Canadian woman to receive the fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons. In 1959, while working at the Women’s College Hospital, the hospital was accredited as on of the teaching hospitals, Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto and she was the first woman to be appointed to a department of medicine in a teaching hospital. In 1973 she retired and was awarded the order of Canada.

Gail Toupin. Corporal Toupin becomes the first woman member of the Skyhawks, the skydiving demonstration team of the Canadian Army in 1978.

Sheila Hellstrom. In 1988 Colonel Sheila Hellstrom is the first woman to graduate from Canada's National Defence College. She will also become the first woman Regular Force member to achieve the rank of Brigadier-General.

Wendy Clay. Dr. Clay was the first woman officer cadet in the Royal Canadian Navy. She the first woman medical officer in the Armed forces and the first Canadian woman to receive her degree in aviation medicine. She was the first woman to graduate from the military's basic pilot training and in 1974 she qualified for her pilots wings six years before the pilot classification is opened to all women In 1994 she became the first woman in the Canadian Forces promoted to the rank of Major-General .

Maryse Carmichael. Born Quebec City, Quebec May 29, 1971. A captain with the Canadian Air Force, Maryse had the job of VIP pilot flying the Prime Minister or the Governor General of Canada. In November 2000 she became the first female pilot to fly with the Canadian Forces’s national aerobatic team, the Snowbirds. In 2001 she was promoted to the rank of Major. She is married to Major Scott Greenough, who is also a pilot with the Canadian Forces.

Marta Mulkins. Lieutenant-Commander Marta Mulkins is the first woman to serve as captain of a Canadian warship, the HMCS Summerside in 2000.

Colleen Beattie. Master Seaman Colleen Beattie is the first woman in the Canadian Forces to qualify as a submariner in 2003. It was announced in 2000, by the Chief of the Canadian Forces Maritime Staff , that women may serve in submarines.

Mary Ann Burdette née Norstrom. Born Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. In 1958 she enlisted in the armed Forces and served as an Air Force policewoman. Returning to civilian life she took a position as an office administrator with the Provincial Government. In 1969 she joined her local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion in Terrace Bay, British Columbia. She worked at several executive positions and became the first woman to serve as President of her Branch. By 1989 after serving again in several positions on provincial executive she became the first woman to head up the Pacific Command of the Royal Canadian Legion. In 2004 she was elected as the Dominion President, the first woman to hold this title. In 2005 she took a successful trip to Afghanistan to visit the troops as part of her outreaching to encourage the next generation membership for the Legion. She has been awarded the Canadian Minister of Veteran’s Affairs Commendation for her dedication and service. Source: Legion acclaims Dominion President… June 15, 2004 www.legion.ca/nesa (accessed June 2007)

Bev Busson née Beverly MacDonald Born Halifax, Nova Scotia August 23, 1951. Bev was on of the frist group of 32 women forces trained for the RCMP in Saskatchewan in 1974. During her career she served in a number of front-line operational positions including general duty, fraud, investigations. Drug enforcement and crimes investigation. During the time she was working she studied for her BA at Simon Fraser University in and earned a law degree from the University of British Columbia. She moved up through the rants fro inspector in 1992, superintendent in 1996, (the highest ranking woman in the RCMP at that time) Assistant Commissioner and Commanding Officer of Saskatchewan. She left the force in 1999 to head up the Organized Crime Agency of British Columbia. By 2000 she was back with the RCMP as Commanding Officer of British Columbia and then Deputy Commissioner for the Pacific Region. On December 16, 2006 she became the first woman appointed as Canadian Commissioner of the force. In 2004 she was invested Commander of the Order of Merit of the Police Forces and in June 2006 she received the Order of British Columbia. She also holds the 30 year long service award from the RCMP and the Queen’s Golden Jubilee Medal. She served as Commissioner of the RCMP, retiring in July 2007 when she received the gratitude of the Government of Canada for leading the force at a time when her dedication and support were a required asset. Source: Senior executives, RCMP. Biography: Beverley (Bev.) Busson. http://www.rcmp-grc.gc.ca/exec_bios/busson_e Also available in French. (Accessed June 23, 2008)

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