National Galleries of Scotland

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. In 1928 she was appointed Principal of Kinnaird College for Women in Lahore, the first women’s college in the Punjab. Founded in 1913 by a mission devoted to working with South Asian women Kinnaird aimed to improve the professional teaching qualifications of Punjabi women. It quickly became one of the premier residential schools in pre-Partition India. This photograph shows McNair (in the centre) with her class in front of the 'Red House'. The girl to her right is Priobala Mangat Rai who was one of McNair's first students and succeeded her as Principal of the College. Mangat Rai retired to Scotland in 1969 and was McNair’s companion until her death.