Kerstin Hesselgren (14 January 1872 – 19 August 1962) was a Swedish politician. Hesselgren became the first woman to be elected into the Upper House of the Swedish Parliament after female suffrage was introduced in 1921. She was elected by suggestion of the Liberals with support from the Social democrats. Biography Hesselgren was born at Torsåker, Gästrikland. She was the daughter of medical doctor Gustaf Alfred Hesselgren and Maria Margareta Wærn. She was the eldest of six children. She never married. She was educated by a governess at home and then at a girl school in Switzerland. In 1895, she graduated as a feldsher in Uppsala; in 1896. The following year she led the School of Domestic Science in Stockholm. Whilst on leave she qualified as a Sanitary Inspector from Bedford college in 1905 and left the college and her job in 1906. Early career Kerstin Hesselgren worked as a sanitary-inspector in Stockholm from 1912 to 1934 and school kitchen inspector from 1909 to 1934. Hesselgren had originally wished to be a physician, but her weak constitution had made her regarded unfit for this profession. Instead, she educated herself for the profession of Sanitary Inspector, to be able to focus on better health conditions through inspection and improvement of the living conditions in the capital, which were, at that time, appalling for the working classes. She did manage to introduce improvements, which made her respected in political circles. She was chairperson of the Swedish School Teachers Society from 1906 to 1913. She was management director of the Women's Work Environment Inspection from 1913 to 1934, and was also one of the founders of the magazine Tidevarvet which was launched in 1923. In July 1925, Hesselgren attended and spoke at the First International Conference of Women in Science, Industry and Commerce held in London, organised by Caroline Haslett and the British Women's Engineering Society. From 1906 onward, she received a number of political assignments. Politician Hesselgren was given the Illis Quorum in 1918, and in 1921 she became one of the five first women to be elected to the Swedish Parliament after the introduction of women's suffrage alongside Nelly Thüring (Social Democrat), Agda Östlund (Social Democrat) Elisabeth Tamm (liberal) and Bertha Wellin (Conservative) in the Lower Chamber. Hesselgren was alone in the Upper Chamber and thereby became the first woman there. She was a liberal from 1922 to 1923 and from