Minerva Scientifica Birthday: Victoria Drummond
14th October 2025
Victoria Drummond
Marine engineer
BORN 14th October 1894, Errol, Perthshire, Scotland
“Row Gondolier – A Barcarolle” by Isabella Scott Gibson (1786-1838)
The video is part of “Scottish Superwomen of Science” performed by Frances M Lynch at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2017. The scene takes up the story of Victoria Drummond just as she arrives on holiday in Vienna on the day the Nazi’s invaded…….. The music is by the Edinburgh composer, singer and harpist, Isabella Scott Gibson, and needed very little adaptation to become a vehicle for Victoria’s story.
Victoria Drummond
Victoria Drummond (1894 – 1978) was a WW2 Marine Engineer – the first British woman seagoing engineer. She began work in a garage in Perth, Scotland in October 1916. She progressed to the Caledon ship works in Dundee where she was the only woman among 3,000 men. The god-daughter of Queen Victoria, born at Megginch Castle in Perthshire, her aristocratic voice and background must have been both a boon and a difficulty in her chosen field. She was a brave woman whose work as an engineer saved ships during bombardments in WW2 .
You can find more about Victoria Drummond on her Minerva Scientifica page
https://minervascientifica.co.uk/victoria-drummond/
