Civil engineer Kik Hong Ong at work during the construction of the Birmingham to Preston Motorway (M6) in 1961
Kik Hong Ong was the first woman to be employed as a civil engineer by John Laing & Son Ltd. At the time this photograph was taken, she was 21 years old and was a student at London University, also working on the M6 Sections C/D for the summer vacation. It was rare for women to be employed in the engineering industry in the 1960s. She went on to become one of the first female engineers in her home country of Malaysia.
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N/APeriod
1960s (1960 - 1969)Themes
