Historic plaque located on Elizabeth Street in the community of Cookstown. It features an image of Emily Murphy, as well as the logos of the Town of Innisfil and the County of Simcoe. The sign reads: "Emily (Ferguson) Murphy was born in Cookstown on March 14, 1868 to a prominent local legal family. In 1887, she married Reverend Arthur Murphy at St. John's Anglican Church just a few houses down from this site. 10 Church Street was owned by the Ferguson family. The Murphy's lived in Ontario until 1903, when they moved to western Canada (Manitoba in 1903 and later Alberta in 1907). Emily Murphy wrote many reviews and articles for Canadian magazines under the pen name "Janey Canuck" and also published four very popular books of personal sketches. She was passionate about children's welfare and became an Edmonton Juvenile Court judge. In 1916, she was appointed the first woman magistrate in the British Empire. Legally, however, she was not considered a "person" under the British North America Act. In 1927, Murphy along with Henrietta Edwards, Louise McKinney, Nellie McClung and Irene Parlby led the legal challenge now known as the Persons Case. In 1929, the "Famous Five", succeeded in convincing the British Privy Council that a woman was indeed a person. This decision by the British Courts allowed womn to sit on the Canadian Senate and be eligible to hold other appointed or elected positions. She died in Edmonton, Alberta in 1933."
