The Australian Women's Register

Barbara Ross was a historian and a former staff member of the National Library of Australia (NLA). Prior to the NLA Barbara worked as a County Record Office archivist in England and as an archivist with the Commonwealth Archives Office in Canberra. For a time she also worked as a valuer under the Taxation Incentives for the Arts Scheme.

Ninette Dutton published a number of books on the Australian landscape and gardening which she often illustrated with her own botanical drawings. Ninette also studied art in both Europe and America, establishing herself as an enamellist and often holding exhibitions of her work.

Lady Elizabeth Wilson, wife of Sir Keith Cameron Wilson, was very active in the Adelaide community and involved in many local organisations. She was divisional commandant of the South Australian division of the Red Cross during the Second World War and chairman of the branch from 1969 to 1972. In 1946 Elizabeth was approached to become a member of the board of governors of the Burnside War Memorial Hospital and she remained a member for the duration of her life.

For seven years Elizabeth was president of the Mothers’ and Babies’ Health Association (MBHA), in addition to being chairman of the Saint Peter’s College Mission and a patron of the Cornish Association of South Australia. Elizabeth was a member of the Pan-Pacific South East Asian Women’s Association for a number of decades, and at the time of her oral history interview with Amy McGrath, she was also president of the Association.

In 1946 Elizabeth was appointed an MBE for her work with charities, followed by a CBE in 1959 for her work in social welfare.

Christobel Mattingley has published 45 children’s books, five biographical or history books for adults, as well as short stories, poems, articles and film scripts.

For her writing, Christobel has received numerous awards, including the Children’s Book Council of the Year Award, Younger Readers (1982), and Children’s Christian Book of the Year (1986). In 2017 her book Maralinga’s Long Shadow: Yvonne’s Story, was awarded the Young People’s History Prize in the NSW Premier’s History Awards.

In addition, Christobel has received two Honorary Doctorates; one from the University of South Australia in 1995 and the other an Honorary Doctor of Letters from the University of Tasmania in 2015.

Christobel Mattingley has also been awarded an AM for service to literature, particularly children’s literature, and for community service through her commitment to social and cultural issues.

Miriam Hyde was one of the Australia’s leading pianists and composers of the twentieth century.

Ellen Ryan held licences for hotels in the Northern Territory from 1878, becoming a wealthy and successful business woman in her own right. She had a reputation as one of the Northern Territory’s best hostesses, organising a variety of entertainment for her hotel patrons and local residents.

Ellen was one of the 82 Territory women who enrolled to vote after the franchise was granted to South Australian and Territory women in 1894.

Helen Ferber’s lifelong engagement with public affairs and social welfare, both in Australia and Europe, reflected her commitment to the common good. She began her working life in World War II, monitoring and translating enemy radio broadcasts for the Australian Short Wave Listening Post. After the war, her language skills, love of other cultures and strong sense of social justice led her to work with United Nations refugee agencies in Europe.

In 1948, Helen married David Ferber, US Vice Consul in Melbourne, and took up the work of a ‘diplomatic wife’. In the mid 1950s the family returned to Australia and Helen spent much of her time caring for their disabled son. During this period she undertook volunteer work with women’s organisations in Melbourne, and rose rapidly to positions of authority.

In 1965 she took a part-time position with the Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research at the University of Melbourne. Initially employed to interview non-English-speaking households, she soon progressed to writing and editing reports, becoming the editor of the institute’s publications and a respected writer on social policy. Throughout her life she developed and cherished many deep friendships and was both an inspiration and support to other women as they developed their skills and careers.

Lily Kingsborough was an amateur photographer who is best known for her studies of flowers.

Marie Anne Tuck is mainly known for her paintings. Tuck was the first Australian woman to win honours at the Paris Salon. She worked as an artist, teacher and at a photography studio, in Western Australia. She exhibited in Paris, Western Australia, Adelaide, South Australia and New South Wales.

Doris Barnes was an award winning amateur photographer who practised photography throughout her life, active from the 1910s to the 1990s. Her photographs were predominantly created in the Pictorialist style. She was a life member of the Adelaide Camera Club, exhibited in Adelaide and interstate, as well as in London. The Art Gallery of South Australia acquired some of her portraits as early as 1940.

Gwendolyn Morris was known for the photographs she created in the Pictorialist style, as well as for her architectural photographs.

Ester Baylis was a prize-winning Pictorialist photographer and an active member of the Adelaide Camera Club. Baylis’ focus was primarily architectural photography, having previously trained in architecture. Baylis initially used a Box Brownie camera, and with prize money purchased a Thornton Pickard enlarger and an Adams Minex camera. Baylis was the first woman photographer to be included in an Australian public collection.

Joyce Waterhouse was an amateur Pictorialist landscape photographer. She travelled widely, taking photographs in India, Indonesia, New Zealand and North Africa, as well as of locations throughout Australia. She enlarged and printed her own photographs and was able to support herself financially with the sale of her travel photography. She exhibited her work in South Australia and Victoria.

The Supreme Court of South Australia is the superior court of the State and is a court of both law and equity. It deals with the most important civil cases and the most serious criminal matters. In its appellate jurisdiction, the Supreme Court reviews and determines errors which may have occurred in other courts of the State and interprets and expounds the law for the guidance of other courts. The court was set up by ordinance of 7 Will. IV c.5 on 2 January 1837, five days after the Colony of South Australia was founded. Its first sitting was held on 13 May 1837.

The Magistrates’ Court of South Australia was established by the Magistrates Court Act 1991. The Court handles the greatest proportion of litigation in the State. It has four jurisdictions: Civil (General Claims); Civil (Minor Claims); Civil (Consumer and Business) and Criminal.

Moya Dodd is a lawyer and former international footballer with the Matildas, now making a contribution to sports governance in Australia and internationally. She was named one of World Soccer magazine’s People of the Year in 2013, and listed in the top 100 Women of Influence by the Australian Financial Review in 2012 and 2014.

During a long career in the Australian Public Service in the Attorney-General’s Department and in the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Joan Sheedy held a number of senior positions responsible for the provision of legal policy advice on, and the development of legislation in the fields of human rights, privacy, copyright and freedom of information. She was involved in the development of many major legislative reforms including the Sex Discrimination Act 1984, the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Act 1986, the Privacy Act 1988 (and subsequent reforms in the privacy area), the Disability Discrimination Act 1992, the Copyright Amendment (Digital Agenda) Act 2000, the Copyright Amendment (Moral Rights) Act 2000 and the significant Commonwealth FOI reforms of 2009 and 2010. She also represented Australia in negotiations at the United Nations in Geneva and Vienna on human rights, at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) in Geneva on copyright and at the EU in Brussels on privacy.

Raelene Webb QC holds a Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Physics from the University of Adelaide and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of Queensland. She was admitted to the Supreme Court of the Northern Territory and the High Court of Australia in 1992. In 2004, she was appointed Queen’s Counsel. Prior to her five year appointment on 1 April 2013 by the Attorney General, as President of the National Native Title Tribunal (NNTT), Raelene was named as one of the leading native title silks in Australia. She has appeared as lead counsel in many native title and Aboriginal land matters and has advised upon and appeared in the High Court in most land-mark cases on the judicial interpretation and development of native title/Aboriginal land law since the decision of Mabo V Queensland (No 2).

Raelene became a fellow of the Australia Academy of Law in August 2013 and delivered the Annual Richard Cooper Memorial Lecture at the TC Beirne School of Law, University of Queensland, at the end of September 2013. She was a recipient of the 2014 Law Council of Australia President’s Medal, in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the legal profession in Australia.

On receipt of the award, Raelene encouraged other women thinking of taking risks with their careers to be brave.

‘I marvel how it is that a shy country girl coming to the law in mid-life, finds herself here receiving this prestigious award and in the company of so many distinguished lawyers who have themselves contributed so much to the legal profession, both personally and through their work with the Law Council of Australia.

My advice to all who are contemplating scaling the walls of the legal profession, and particularly to women: be courageous, be bold, and above all, be passionate about the law.’

Go to ‘Details’ below to read a reflective essay written by Raelene Webb for the Trailblazing Women and the Law Project.

Leslie Williams was elected Member for Port Macquarie representing the National Party in the Legislative Assembly of the New South Wales Parliament in 2011. From 2015 she served as Minister for Early Childhood Education, for Aboriginal Affairs and Assistant Minister for Education.

Jenny Leong was elected as the Member for Newtown representing the Greens Party in the Legislative Assembly of the New South Wales Parliament in 2015.

Before her election to the State Parliament she stood unsuccessfully as a Greens candidate for the seat of Sydney in the 2004 and 2007 federal elections.

The Women Lawyers’ Association of South Australia was incorporated in July 1998, although the need for a women’s association had been discussed well before then and was long in the making.

On 21st September 1988 a meeting was held at the Law Society to discuss forming a women lawyers group. Over 95 women attended and 60 more sent their apologies. This represented more than half of the women practising law at that time and clearly indicated that the concept of a women lawyers committee or group had considerable support.

The Women Lawyers Committee of the Law Society was formally established in April 1989. A volunteer committee took responsibility for running the section, which has continued to this day. Following the establishment of Australian Women Lawyers in 1997, the Women Lawyers Association of South Australia Inc. has operated as an independently incorporated body, although their activities remain intertwined with those of the Women Lawyers Committee of the Law Society.

Stephanie Mortan has represented Australia in cycling at both World and Oceania championships.

Jane Claxton was a member of the gold medal-winning Australian women’s hockey team at the Commonwealth Games in 2014.

Karri McMahon began playing hockey as a child, before studying to be a paramedic at Flinders University. As a member of the women’s hockey team, she represented Australia at the Commonwealth Games, the Women’s Hockey World Cup and the Champions Trophy.