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Eilidh Finlayson

PHD SCHOLAR | SCOTTISH GRADUATE SCHOOL FOR ARTS AND HUMANITIES | 2024 – 2027

Eilidh Finlayson is a History PhD student at the University of Glasgow, currently researching Scottish female beneficiaries of transatlantic slavery with support from the SGSAH AHRC DTP. Building on her MSc dissertation, which examined how Glasgow gentry women inherited and invested wealth derived from slavery, her doctoral research aims to illuminate the role of Scottish women as absentee beneficiaries in Scottish society and as enslavers in North America and the West Indies. Eilidh’s PhD research challenges traditional narratives that have minimised Scotland’s and women’s roles in transatlantic slavery, instead revealing how social norms and intersectional experiences allowed many Scottish women to amass fortunes linked to the transatlantic slave trade. She will also explore how such fortunes funded philanthropic causes and examine the degree to which Scottish working-class women accessed slavery-derived wealth. 

Eilidh has worked in several of Glasgow’s museums, reflecting her passion for history and her commitment to making academic research accessible to the wider public. She is also currently utilising her expertise in 18th-century Scottish history to conduct a scoping report for the Hunterian Museum. Eilidh’s work in the heritage sector, combined with her academic background, has led her to think deeply about the impact of her research. As such, Eilidh is eager to participate in future developments or projects that will account for Scotland’s colonial legacies. 

Eilidh is honoured to be part of the Stuart Hall Foundation, where she can contribute to and learn from a diverse network of scholars while deepening understandings of race, class, and gender. As a working-class student who entered university through the Widening Participation programme, she is dedicated to promoting inclusivity in academia.