This photograph forms part of an archive which belonged to
Isabella T. McNair. Born in Kilmarnock, McNair gained an MA in
English from the University of Edinburgh before moving to
British India in 1917 to teach at Women?s Christian College in
Madras. In 1928 she was appointed Principal of Kinnaird College
for Women in Lahore. McNair followed in the footsteps of a wave
of British missionary women who began arriving in India during
the late nineteenth century. A gentle woman, she was noted for
her deliberate manner and soft voice, even when disciplining her
students. She promoted religious tolerance, allowing Muslim
girls who transferred to Kinnaird in the 1930s to fast during
Ramadan. After Partition many refugee students were comforted by
the warmth of her welcome after the displacement and in some
cases violence they had experienced.