The second portion of the New Year Honours List, published on Tuesday, announced the award of the M B E to Mrs Elizabeth Simpson, of the Square, Higham Ferrers, in recognition of her work as County Secretary of the Women’s Land Army for Northampton shire (including the Soke of Peterbrough).

Mrs Simpson is the wife of Major F Joseph Simpson of Higham Ferrers, and was born in America, being the daughter of Mr Edward Vincent Surr, a lawyer. From sunny Southern California she came to England at the age of nine and lived at Cumberton Hall, near Kidderminster. She was educated at Hampstead.

First Woman Mayor

In the war of 1914-18 she served first as a demonstrator in the Food Production Department and then as organising secretary to the Birmingham and Warwickshire Land Army. Marrying Major Simpson in July, 1920, she was soon in touch with social life and work in Northamptonshire, and in 1925 was called upon by the Higham Ferrers Town Council to make history as the first woman mayor of the 1200 years old borough.

Mrs Simpson held that position with charm and distinction for two years, becoming an elected councillor before the second year began. She recalled at that time that her grandmother, Mrs Elizabeth Surr, was the first woman on the London School Board and, incidentally, the first to have her cartoon in “Punch.”

Major Simpson was Town Clerk of Higham Ferrers during his wife’s mayoralty and retained the position until a few years ago.

For several years Mrs Simpson was Divisional Commissioner for Girl Guides in the Kettering, Wellingborough and Higham Ferrers District, president of the Higham Ferrers Women’s Unionist Association and president of the Chelveston Women’s Institute.

Ready for War

When the present war opened Mrs Simpson, armed with her previous experience, was ready to develop the Women’s land Army in Northamptonshire at a moment’s notice. She had, in fact, been preparing for some months, and had enlisted a nucleus of about 50 girls. Before September, 1939, was out a training course was in progress at Moulton Institute, and throughout the war, thanks largely to Mrs Simpson’s day and night service, Northamptonshire has been conspicuously well organised form the land Army point of view. There has been up to 2,000 girls on the register at one time, and probably twice that number have passed through the books.

In her many contacts with the War Agricultural Executive Committee, the Ministry of Labour and the girls themselves Mrs Simpson has been credited with “the personality and tact that count.” The secretarial work has been conducted form Higham Ferrers.

Mrs Simpson has the distinction of being the only Women’s Land Army secretary in the current Honours List. Her only brother, an officer in the Worcestershire Regt. was killed in action on the Somme during the last war.