Margaret Chalmers Papers

Personal papers of Margaret Chalmers.

Margaret Ethel Chalmers (formerly Murphy, born Homewood) was born on 9th October 1914 to Arthur George William and Ethel Homewood in Twickenham, growing up in 33 Strafford Road. She attended Twickenham County School from 1926 to 1933, before moving on to Southlands Training College until 1935, where she qualified to become a teacher, undertaking teaching practice at both Orleans School and Burlington Juniors. She gained employment at Kneller Secondary Girls' School in 1937, before leaving in 1940 after her marriage on 11th September 1939 to Samuel Murphy. The two then seem to have undertaken a good deal of travelling, with a notable stay in South Africa in the early 1940s. She was next employed in England at Kneller in 1949, before taking up a permanent post as an assistant teacher at Matthew Arnold, and being offered a Graded Post in 1956. After remaining at Matthew Arnold for ten years, in 1960 she took up the position of an assistant mistress at Kneller, where she remained until her retirement in 1969. On 18th May 1961 she divorced Samuel, but retained his surname until 1969, when she changed her name to Chalmers. She married Wilson Chalmers on the 20th of November 1971. Having lost both her parents in the sixties, her father in December 1963, and her mother in December 1967, she lived in Yelverton Cottage, Twickenham, with Wilson and a pet dog called Sammy. Wilson died in 1982. Margaret died in June 1985.

The Margaret Chalmers Collection is arranged in seven series:

• DC5/1 Personal papers, 1914-1984
• DC5/2 Education, 1926-1935
• DC5/3 Professional papers, 1937-1979
• DC5/4 Kneller Secondary School for Girls, 1950-1967
• DC5/5 Genealogical research, 1858-1982
• DC5/6 Travel, c1943-unknown
• DC5/7 Photographs, c1910-c1985

This collection is open for access and can be viewed at Richmond upon Thames Local Studies Library and Archive.
The opening times and address for Richmond upon Thames Local Studies Library and Archive can be found online at: http://www.richmond.gov.uk/localstudies
If you would like further information about accessing this collection or have any other queries, please contact Richmond upon Thames Local Studies Library and Archive through any of the contact methods listed at: http://www.richmond.gov.uk/localstudies

A more detailed catalogue of this collection can be found online at https://richmond.spydus.co.uk/spydus.html