Thérèse Casgrain died on November 3, 1981, in Montreal, Quebec, at the age of 85.
Thérèse Casgrain died on November 3, 1981, in Montreal, Quebec, at the age of 85, closing a public life that had spanned more than six decades of activism for women's rights, social welfare, and world peace.
By the time of her death, Casgrain was widely regarded as one of the most important figures in the history of Canadian feminism and social reform. She had led the successful campaign for Quebec women's provincial suffrage in 1940, became the first woman to lead a Canadian provincial political party (the Quebec CCF, later NDP, in 1951), founded and led the Voice of Women peace organization, and served as a Canadian senator beginning in 1970.
In recognition of her lifelong contributions, she had been made a Companion of the Order of Canada in 1974, the country's highest civilian honour, and received the Pearson Medal of Peace in 1979 for her international work on behalf of peace and disarmament.
Her legacy endures through institutions and honours bearing her name, including the Fondation Thérèse-Casgrain, which continues to support social justice and women's causes in Quebec, and through her memoir Une femme chez les hommes (1971), which chronicled her experiences as a woman navigating and reshaping Canadian political life. She remains a foundational figure studied in Canadian women's history and is commemorated in numerous parks, streets, schools, and historical designations across Quebec and Canada.