Eliza Ritchie was born in Halifax on May 20, 1856. She began her academic career at Dalhousie, graduating in 1887 with a Bachelor of Letters. Ritchie earned her doctoral degree at Cornell University, presenting her thesis in 1889, becoming one of the first Canadian women to obtain a PhD. She then pursued further education in Leipzig, Germany and at Oxford University. After teaching from 1890 to 1900 in New England, Ritchie returned to Dalhousie in 1901 to teach philosophy. She became the first woman to sit on the Board of Governors (1919) and was also the first woman to be granted an honorary degree from Dalhousie (1927). She was one of the initial members of the Editorial Board of the Dalhousie Review and an occasional contributor to the journal. Eliza Ritchie was an active suffragist and was a leader in the feminist movement in Halifax. As part of her advocacy for women, she proposed that a large residence for female students was required at Dalhousie, which led to the building of Sherriff Hall in 1922. Previously, the first women's residence at Dalhousie was a house where Eliza Ritchie held the position of warden. A later residence, constructed posthumously in 1986, was named in her honour (Eliza Ritchie Hall). She died in Halifax on September 5, 1933.

Forbes, E. R. "Ritchie, Eliza" in The Canadian Encyclopedia. Historica Foundation of Canada, 2007. Retrieved from http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/index.cfm?PgNm=TCE&Params=A1ARTA0006849

Dalhousie Archives. The Buildings of Dalhousie University: Eliza Ritchie Hall. n.d. Retrieved from http://www.library.dal.ca/duasc/buildings/ElizaRitchieHall.htm

The fonds was accessioned on March 03, 1981. Custodial history is unknown.

Fonds consists of a manuscript of Eliza Ritchie's thesis, completed in 1889 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York; two essays published in the Dalhousie Review between 1930 and 1933; and a notebook listing books owned by Ritchie.

[Identification of item], Eliza Ritchie fonds, MS-2-433, Box [box number], Folder [folder number], Dalhousie University Archives and Special Collections, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada.