The Tynwald Management Committee has recommended that Jean Thornton-Duesbery (1907-1997) be added to the Manx Patriots’ Roll of Honour.
It would be in recognition of her lifelong dedication to the Isle of Man as a nurse, magistrate, Girlguiding leader, and politician.
Born in London, she moved to the island in 1925 when her father became Bishop of Sodor and Man.
After training as a nurse and midwife, Thorton-Duesbery worked in London and Jerusalem before returning to the Isle of Man at the outbreak of the Second World War, settling in Maughold.
Elected to the House of Keys for Garff in 1966, becoming the only woman in the House and the first single female MHK, she served on numerous boards, including as Chairman of the Board of Education.
As well as becoming the first woman to be appointed to an executive role in Tynwald, Thorton-Duesbery was widely respected in Tynwald and retired as chair of the Board of Education having secured a large extension to Ashley Hill Primary School and primarily plans for what would become QEII High School.
The Committee’s report states her legacy is “marked by a strong sense of duty, humour, and commitment to public welfare”.
Upon her passing, she bequeathed land in Maughold, now known as Thornton-Duesbery Wood, for the use of the Girlguiding movement.