@iamjosephofgh: In nineteenth-century Cape Coast, one of the most influential business figures was a woman. Her name was Catherine Dawson, widely known as Mrs Swanzy. In local history, she was also remembered as Efua Ketsi. She was a merchant with substantial property, commercial connections and influence in the affairs of Cape Coast. Her wealth was so considerable that historical accounts described her as possibly the richest woman on the Gold Coast during the middle of the nineteenth century. She was connected to the powerful Swanzy trading family and owned valuable land and buildings in Cape Coast, including Fortgate House. But she was not only a businesswoman. In 1855, she wrote to Governor Henry Connor to protest the colonial poll tax, making clear that she was paying under protest. And during the 1873–74 British expedition against Asante, she reportedly supplied 80 women from her household to work as carriers. Her story reveals a side of Gold Coast history that deserves much more attention: African women were not merely watching history happen. Some were merchants, property owners, political voices and influential participants in public affairs. Her name was Catherine Dawson. How many other powerful Ghanaian women have we left out of our history books? #GhanaCulture #CatherineDawson #MrsSwanzy #CapeCoastHistory #WomenInGhanaHistory

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Saturday 07 November 2026 18:38:11 GMT