Royal Canadian Mint says that during her life, Elsie MacGill changed what was possible for Canadian women
They called her the Hurricane Queen. Now, Elsie MacGill, a pioneering aeronautical engineer and woman’s rights activist, is on the newest commemorative loonie, which was made by Victoria artist Claire Watson.
Watson says that the Royal Canadian Mint chose her last year to make the design for the loonie coin that honors MacGill.
Since 2019, she has made three silver coins to mark important events. But this is her first design that shows the legacy of a person.
“I’d never done a loonie before, so it was exciting,” she said. “Then I read more about Elsie and found out what she believed in and what she did. She is a very interesting person, so it sounded like a tough task.”
The design was chosen from several that were sent in by Canadian women artists. Deneen Perrin, a spokeswoman for the Royal Canadian Mint, said that engineers, historians, and members of MacGill’s family all looked over the design to make sure it was correct.
MacGill’s legac
Perrin says that because MacGill was the first woman in the world to become an aeronautical engineer, she changed what women in Canada could do during her lifetime. MacGill was born in Vancouver.
She was the first Canadian womanIn 1927, she was the first woman in North America to get a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. In 1929, she was the first woman in Canada to get a master’s degree in aeronautical engineering. In 1938, she was the first woman in Canada to work as an engineer.
In the year 1929, she got polio. Even though MacGilltold by doctorsEven though she was told she would never walk again, she learned to walk again with the help of two canes and kept pursuing a career in aviation.
MacGill became the head engineer at Canadian Car and Foundry, where she designed the biplane Maple Leaf II.
During the Second World War, she came up with a new modular construction system that helped the factory make more than 1,450 Hawker Hurricane planes. This was so impressive that it was written about in a comic book.Queen of the Hurricanes.
Perrin says the mint decided to honour MacGill as part of its mission to feature diverse, underrepresented people that have made a difference in Canada.
“Elsie MacGill was a really interesting [figure] for people to really get behind and for us to help educate Canadians about these interesting stories and interesting people,” she said.
West Coast-inspired, self-taught artis
Watson is a self-taught artist whose work typically depicts West Coast-inspired images, including animals and landscape scenes. She specializes in pen and ink, watercolour and digital design.
Prior to her time in Victoria, she lived on a sailboat in Tofino and Gabriola Island.
Watson’s previous commemorative coins were quarters that celebrated the anniversary of the St. Lawrence Seaway, Canada’s unique landscapes, and the 100th anniversary of the Royal Agricultural Fair in Toronto.
MacGill said she wanted to portray Elsie as a “confident, strong individual.”
The coin depicts MacGill looking at two of the planes she is famous for — the Hawker Hurricane and Maple Leaf II. Her hands, which are wearing an engineer’s ring, hold blueprints.
Three million of the commemorative coins were introduced into circulation at the start of August, two million of which have colours featuring the green and brown hues of the Hawker Hurricane fighter plane.
“To be able to celebrate this trail-blazing woman was really quite incredible for us,” said Perrin.