Jessie Beatrice Kitson

Jessie Beatrice Kitson (1876–1965) was the first woman to be Lord Mayor of Leeds, West Riding of Yorkshire, England. She was Lord Mayor from 1942 to 1943.

Jessie Beatrice Kitson
Lord Mayor of Leeds, Jessie B. Kitson by A. R. Middleton Todd
Born1876
Died1965
Known forFirst woman to be Lord Mayor of Leeds

Life

Kitson came from the well-known Leeds family and was the fourth member of the family to serve as lord mayor.[1] Her parents were John Hawthorn Kitson, brother of James Kitson, 1st Baron Airedale (1835–1911), engineer and MP, and Jessie, née Ollershaw. Her grandfather was James Kitson senior (1807–1885), the founder of Kitson and Company. Her brother was the artist Robert Hawthorn Kitson (1873–1947).[2][3] She attended Halliwick School.[4][5] She became close friends with Princess Mary who lived nearby at Harewood House.[6] She was also a correspondent of Mary Kingsley, who she stayed in contact with after she spoke in Leeds.[5]

Kitson had several close female friendships throughout her lifetime, including Miss E M Woodgate, to whose home she retired to in 1945.[5] A close friend in Leeds was Ethel Mallinson.[5]

Career
Photographed to the right of Princess Mary at Leeds Art Gallery is Elinor Lupton who served as Lady Mayoress when Kitson was Lord Mayor of Leeds

Public service was central to Kitson's work: in 1913 she was elected to the Leeds Board of Guardians.[5] However, although she was a member of the Otley Women's Liberal Association 1914-15, she tried to stay apart from party politics.[5] She spoke publicly against women's suffrage.[5] She did stand to be an independent councillor after the First World War, but was not elected.[5]

Kitson was elected Lord Mayor of the County Borough of Leeds on 18 November 1942 due to her work in public life in Leeds.[7] The previous Lord Mayor, Arthur Clark, died on 9 November, shortly after being elected to the position.[8] With her appointment she became the first woman to be Lord Mayor of Leeds.[1] Kitson's friend Elinor Gertrude Lupton (1886–1979) served as her Lady Mayoress.[9] Lupton described herself and Kitson as "the two worst dressed ladies in Leeds".[10]

Kitson's portrait was painted in oils by A. R. Middleton Todd is held in Leeds Civic Hall.[11]

At her death in 1965, she was described as "of "Elmet", Brimpton, near Reading" and left an estate of £38,281.[12]

Honours

In 1944, the University of Leeds conferred on Kitson the honorary degree of LL.D..[13]

References
  1. "Fantastic photo flashback to year Leeds had its first female Lord Mayor". Newsroom. Leeds City Council. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  2. Bradford, Eveleigh. "Robert Hawthorn Kitson (1873–1947) Artist, Patron, Exile". They Lived in Leeds. Thoresby Society. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  3. Bradford, Eveleigh. "James Kitson, 1807 – 1885: Pioneering Engineer and Industrialist – A Model of Self-Help". They Lived in Leeds. Thoresby Society. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  4. Kitson, Jessie Beatrice (2017). "Autobiography of Beatrice Kitson - Young adulthood". Phelps Ancestry. Retrieved 22 December 2020. Halliwick (school) Reunion - J.B.K. - middle row, far right
  5. 'THE KITSONS AND THE ARTS: A LEEDING FAMILY IN SICILY AND THE WEST RIDING' David Boswell (D Phil. Thesis, 1994)
  6. Suttenstall, S. "Jessie Beatrice Kitson". S. Suttenstall 1988. Retrieved 5 June 2019. The Princess Royal – Mary as she was known to Miss Kitson – was a frequent Royal visitor to the City, and also a personal friend of the Lord Mayor.
  7. "Lord Mayors & Aldermen of Leeds since 1626" (PDF). Leeds City Council. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  8. "Armistice Day, Leeds General Post Office Building, City Square". Leodis. Leeds City Council. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  9. "Paul Jones Flag". Leodis. Leeds City Council. Retrieved 1 May 2019. Image of Kitson and Lupton
  10. News, Yorkshire Evening. "Paul Jones Flag". www.leodis.org. Retrieved 22 November 2020.
  11. "Miss J. B. Kitson, JP, Lord Mayor of Leeds (1942–1943)". Art UK. Retrieved 1 May 2019. Includes image of portrait
  12. "Deaths". The Times. 25 October 1965. p. 12.
  13. "Honorary Graduates: 1904–2018". University of Leeds. Retrieved 1 May 2019.
  • "The Life of Jessie Beatrice Kitson". Phelps Ancestry. Family history website which includes text of Kitson's "autobiography" written for a meeting of "The Little Owls" ladies' group
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