Emily Murphy
Emily Murphy was a notable Canadian author, social reformer, and the first woman police magistrate in Alberta, born in 1868 in Cookstown, Ontario. After receiving a private education and later attending the Bishop Strachan School, she married Anglican minister Arthur Murphy in 1887 and raised four children while accompanying him on various missionary assignments. Throughout her travels in Canada, England, and Europe, Murphy documented her experiences, which led to her literary career; she published her first book, *The Impressions of Janey Canuck Abroad*, in 1902. A strong advocate for women's rights, she played a pivotal role in campaigning for the Alberta Dower Act and revising the Children’s Protection Act, alongside her endeavors for women's suffrage and public services.
In 1916, Murphy made history by becoming the first female police magistrate in Alberta, where she faced resistance but established a women’s court and a juvenile court. Her insightful observations into the connections between poverty, crime, and addiction culminated in her influential book on drug addiction, *The Black Candle*, published in 1922. Over her lifetime, she authored seven books, including works for children. Murphy retired from her legal career in 1931 and passed away in Edmonton, Alberta, in 1933, leaving a lasting legacy as a pioneer for women in law and social advocacy.
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Emily Murphy
Writer
- Born: March 14, 1868
- Birthplace: Cookstown, Ontario, Canada
- Died: October 17, 1933
- Place of death: Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Biography
Emily Murphy was born to a prestigious family in Cookstown, Ontario, Canada, in 1868. She attended the Bishop Strachan School in Toronto, beginning at age fifteen, after being privately tutored in her home. In 1887, she married Anglican minister and missionary Arthur Murphy, with whom she had four children. As the wife of a missionary, Murphy found herself moving frequently and traveling throughout Canada, England, and Europe. Murphy kept a diary of her experiences and her political awakening as she encountered severe poverty in different countries.
In 1899, the family returned to Canada, and Murphy began writing for the National Monthly of Canada and soon became the women’s editor of the magazine. In 1902, Murphy published her first book, The Impressions of Janey Canuck Abroad, which was a slightly fictionalized version of the diary she had kept while abroad. The following year the family suffered a period of serious illness, and one of their daughters died. Upon the advice of their doctor, the Murphy’s moved from Toronto to Swan River, Manitoba. Beginning in 1904, Murphy wrote book reviews and served as the literary editor for the Winnipeg Tribune. After three years, the Murphys again relocated, this time to the province of Alberta.
In 1910, Murphy published her second book, Janey Canuck in the West, another fictionalized account of her experiences, this time about life in the wilds of the Canadian frontier. Two more books recounting Murphy’s travels appeared, Open Trails (1920), in which Murphy visits America, and Seeds of Pine (1922), about northern Canada.
During this period, Murphy also became involved in political activism. She campaigned for the Alberta Dower Act, which awarded women the right to one-third of their husband’s property upon death or divorce. She then helped revise the Alberta Children’s Protection Act, worked for women’s suffrage, and helped establish public libraries and hospitals. In 1916, Murphy was appointed to a position with the impressive title “Police Magistrate in and for the Province of Alberta, and a Commissioner under the Children’s Protection Act.” In this post Murphy served as a judge, often clashing with male lawyers who felt a woman had no place in law. Murphy persevered despite the protests and helped create a women’s court and a juvenile court. A progressive thinker, Murphy began to see interesting patterns in the lives of the criminals with whom she dealt. The link between poverty, drugs, and crime was of particular interest to her, and she wrote a great deal on the subject, publishing the first significant North American book on drug addiction, The Black Candle, in 1922.
Murphy published a total of seven books during her lifetime, including the children’s books Our Little Canadian Cousin of the Great Northwest (1923) and Bishop Bompas (1929). Murphy retired from her legal career in 1931. She died in Edmonton, Alberta, on October 17, 1933.