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9 WOMEN‘S INSTITUTE MOVEMENT The Women‘s Institute is a very important worldâ€"wide rural organization, designed to upâ€" lift the rural home and rural life. It was founded in 1897 in Stoney Creek, Ontario. Adelaide Hunter Hoodless was an important advocate of "domestic science" for women (i.e. the idea that women should beâ€"educated in the science of housework and home lifeâ€"â€" cooking, cleaning, nursing, etc.) to improve family life. She was invited by Mr. Erland Lee to speak about these ideas at a meeting of a local Farmer‘s Institute organization, devoted to improving the scientific knowledge of farmers. At this meeting, Adelaide Hunter Hoodless proposed a similar organization for women to teach "domestic science". With the help of the Ontario Department of Agriculture and an enthusiastic response from across the province, Women‘s Institutes were formed in many villages and townships. The organization was federated across Canada in 1919 and worldâ€"wide in 1929. The major focus of the Women‘s Institute was education. Each institute held a monthly meeting featuring an educational segment and many Women‘s Institutes sponsored educational courses for rural women such as the Demonstration Lecture courses in nursing, cooking, and sewing. The Women‘s Institute‘s other important roles: charitable (providing food and financial aid to distressed rural residents); social (sponsoring teas and concerts); and a community role (building community halls, sponsoring local libraries, and recreation fields). They also helped to sponsor numerous pieces of legislaiion, for example, the milk pasteurization act. Today, the Women‘s Institutes remain an important and active organization in rural Ontario continuing to work for improvements and changes in society. 4 - . > :'::';':?" l ut . ,': -f‘gf;; â€" aesel .2 . k e [ //° E. "‘. _ aa ie e e Yhik 36 > t ar tex c‘ f 4 lt i S [ m . & â€" a MB ; iâ€" jaa °V â€" ';-,;.' â€" s k {' \; 4 *4 : Â¥% 6 PS ,.E:_-_1 _'il'?flfl/;" &3 3 â€"‘,w » ‘ ..4? 'i‘ “.’: ”:" -.I. â€" & ._*'.“.W g 2A . ,: 5 Adelaide Hoodless Mr. Erland Lee s