Swansea park to be named after pioneering businesswoman

Developed by Swansea Council and located next to Swansea Arena, the park first opened to the public 12 months ago.

The council has announced the naming on International Women’s Day – a global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural, and political achievements of women.

Born in Sketty to a prominent family, Amy Elizabeth Dillwyn (1845 to 1935) wrote six novels on themes including feminism and social reform.

After her father’s death in 1892, she inherited and personally managed his spelter works in Llansamlet.

Amy Dillwyn also joined the National Union of Women’s Suffrage Societies and campaigned for women’s suffrage.

Cllr Louise Gibbard, Cabinet Member at Swansea Council and Councillor Champion for Women, said: “It’s very fitting that the park naming is being announced on International Women’s Day because Amy Dillwyn is among the most trailblazing and inspiring women in Swansea’s history.

“Her campaigning work with many other courageous women led to women being granted the right to vote, which is something that should never be forgotten.

“Naming the coastal park in her honour will ensure a long-term legacy for Amy Dillwyn’s life and considerable accomplishments.”

Cllr Elliott King, Swansea Council’s Cabinet Member for Culture and Equalities, said: “As well as her campaigning work for women’s suffrage, Amy Dillwyn was also a gifted novelist and an astute, successful businesswoman at a time when Swansea was at the heart of the world’s copper smelting industry.

“One of the first female industrialists in Britain whose life’s key features also included her LGBTQ connections, the park naming in Amy Dillwyn’s memory will build on all the work the council does to celebrate Swansea’s history and culture.”

In 2018, Amy Dillwyn was chosen as one of the top 100 Welsh Women by Women’s Equality Network Wales, in their project to mark the centenary of the Representation of the People Act 1918.

She was the daughter of Lewis Llewelyn Dillwyn and Elizabeth (née De la Beche).

(Lead image: Swansea Council)