The Australian Women's Register

Dr Mildred Mocatta, a diagnostician, conducted a practice in Adelaide.

Jean Cook spent her childhood in Quorn, South Australia. For a time she lived in Perth, Western Australia before returning to South Australia and living in Adelaide. She conducted some of her music studies under Maude Mary Puddy, a teacher of piano. Cook also taught music and was a teacher at Girton Girls’ School (Kensington Park, S. A.). A member of the Lyceum club’s embroidery circle, she also was involved with the English Embroiderers’ Guild. She helped embroider the Coat of Arms for the Law Court in Adelaide.

Following her marriage in 1923 Helen Winnall moved to a sheep station on the Murray River, South Australia called Maylands. Here she joined the Country Women’s Association.

Elsie Haselgrove, who grew up in Glenelg, a suburb of Adelaide in South Australia, was educated at Hadleigh College and St Peter’s Girl’s School, before attending Adelaide University. There she studied geology under Douglas Mawson, english with Professor Strang, anatomy with Professor Wood Jones and gained her diploma in 1926. She also played with the inter-varsity hockey team and joined the Adelaide Lyceum Club. Following her marriage, she moved to Renmark, South Australia where her husband worked for Angove Winery and later Mildara Wines. Haselgrove became involved in community work in the Renmark area, becoming president of the Guides’ Association. She later moved to Adelaide for her children’s schooling. Here she was not only involved with the South Australian Hockey Association, but became Divisional Commissioner in the Guides.

The daughter of Archibald and Seca (née Lewin) Somerville, Dorothy Somerville was educated at Brownhill Creek School in Mitcham, the Methodists Ladies College (now Annesley College) and the Adelaide Law School. She was the third woman admitted to practice law in South Australia in 1922. Mary Kitson, the first woman admitted to the Bar, joined with Somerville in 1925 to form Australia’s first women’s legal partnership: Kitson & Somerville. Kitson later went to Sydney to work in publishing, and in 1950 she moved to New York to take charge of the United Nations affairs on the Status of Women. Somerville, who continued with the legal practice, became an honorary solicitor to a number of women’s organisations.

Gwendolyn Wilmot Griffiths was educated at Methodists’ Ladies College (now Annesley College) and Girton Girls’ School in Adelaide. She travelled to England where she enrolled in a photography course at the London Polytechnic, worked at the British Broadcasting Commission (BBC) and married James Wilmot Griffiths. A member of the Lyceum Club, Wilmot-Griffiths was involved with the Flower ladies and the Embroidery circle.

Irene Foster was a leader of many circles in the Adelaide Lyceum Club including the Literature Circle. She wrote book reviews for thirty years and was a preliminary judge for the Adelaide Advertiser Literary Competition.

Patience Howard moved around a lot during her childhood. As a small child, she lived in Central South Australia at Bungaree. She was educated at Miss Dow’s boarding school at Glenelg, 1912 at “The Hermitage” in Victoria, and from 1914 at Frensham’s Girls’ school in New South Wales. Later she attended Bedford College in London to study history. During the 1920s she went to an International Students’ conference in Prague before returning to Adelaide in 1924. Howard became a teacher at Woodlands and then Girton Girls’ School in Adelaide. Here she met Mabel Hardy and together they established the Stawell School at Mt Lofty. In 1928 she married Roy Howard. Following his death she and her children moved to Bungaree and then Kensington Park. A member of the Lyceum Club and the Labor Party she also spent time working with meals on wheels.

Dr Marjorie Casley-Smith was educated at the Methodist Ladies’ College (now Annesley College in Adelaide). Upon finishing she spent two years at home learning music and the domestic arts before studying medicine. Following graduation, in 1927, she went to the Royal Adelaide Hospital as House Surgeon under Dr Sleeman. She completed obstetrics at Adelaide’s Queen Victoria Hospital. In 1930 she married Roy Frisby Smith, a lawyer. After her husband’s death, in 1938, she returned to work at the School Medical Health Service. Casley-Smith became Vice President of the National Council of Women of South Australia. She became convenor of Health for SA and Australian Convenor of Health. Dr Casley-Smith started the Marriage Guidance Council, was active in the Asthma Association, and the Mental Health Association. She was involved with music and was an early member of the Lyceum Club.

Anne Stanton was born in Adelaide and educated at the St Peter’s Girls’ School. On leaving school she attended the Conservatorium of Music and then joined the School of Social Studies. Her first job was with the Probation Branch of the Sheriff’s Gaols and Prisons Department. Stanton later became a senior social worker for the Crippled Children’s Association. As Vice-President of the Muscular Dystrophy Association she completed many country visits and with Adelaide Legacy she helped set up holiday camps for children. Stanton was involved with the National Trust, Friends of the Gallery, opera, theatre and the Lyceum Club. On 6 June 1978 Stanton was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australian for her work with crippled children.

Roxy Byrne was born in South Australia in 1912 and attended school in Adelaide. From 1922 to 1929 she attended the Methodist Ladies College (now Annesley College) where she developed her love of the theatre, as well as her skill in hockey. An excellent student (she was dux of the school in her final year) she went on to complete a Bachelor of Arts at Adelaide University in 1933, majoring in Botany and French. After graduation she joined the Adelaide Repertory Theatre, becoming a leading actress who played a variety of outstanding roles for a period of 40 years. She was active in a number of women’s organisations, including the Lyceum Club of Adelaide. She married Dr. Dudley Byrne in 1940 and had three children.

The daughter of a sea captain Winnie Levy grew up in Western Australia. She attended the White Gum Valley School and won a scholarship to the Perth Modern School. She completed a degree in French and Mathematics at the University of Western Australia and then went to the Sorbonne for two years. On returning to Western Australia she became a French tutor at the University of Western Australia. She was forced to resign when she married. After having a baby, she returned to the university to study law. Following her move to Adelaide Levy was admitted to the Bar, in 1945, and practised for 23 years. A member of the Lyceum Club Levy was a leader of the International Circle.

Aileen Bond, born Aileen Ingelby in 1898, was educated at St Peter’s Girls’ School and studied law at Adelaide University and was one of Adelaide’s earliest practising female solictors. She joined the Lyceum Club when it formed in 1922. In 1924 she married John Leslie Bond, a minister, and they moved around South Australia. During World War II her husband enlisted and went to New Guinea and she and the four children lived at Brighton, in Adelaide. After the war they lived at Clare and Victor Harbour. Her husband was given an administrative job and became in turn an Archdeacon and then a Canon. Following his death, Levy moved to Toorak Gardens, an eastern suburb of Adelaide.

Gwen McCarthy was born Gwendolen Helen Ure in Norwood in 1901. She was educated at Methodist Ladies College (now Annesley College) and studied law at Adelaide University, where, in 1923, she was awarded the prestigious Stow prize and medal, styled Stow Scholar because she won three prizes in her annual examinations that year. Gwendolen Ure was the first female Stow Scholar.

She joined the Lyceum Club in Adelaide in 1923 and was president 1967-1969. She married James McCarthy in 1927 and they set up a law practice in Kadina. Here she was involved in the Girl Guides. On her husband’s death McCarthy returned to Adelaide and joined the firm of Thompson, Cleland, Holland and McCarthy.

Eva McLaren was born in Yorkshire and educated in England and Switzerland. She lived in India where at one stage she met Mohandas (Mahatma Ghandi). On a visit to Australia she met and married Captain Edward Smith McLaren. She joined the Lyceum Club and joined every circle except the Italian and bridge circles. McLaren was president in 1948-1949 and 1959-1961.

Betty Riggs was born in 1911 and went to school at the Methodist Ladies College (now Annesley College) and the Presbyterian Girls’ College (now Seymour College). She became a nurse at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in 1930. In 1936 she was nursing in Scotland so was there for the coronation of Edward VIII. Riggs became ill in Scotland and went to a sanatorium in Switzerland and then returned to Adelaide. She joined the 2/4th Australian General Hospital and went to the Middle East where her first tour of duty was to nurse soldiers from Tobruk. Riggs then went to Jerusalem and Colombo before returning to Australia. Upon her return to Adelaide, Riggs cared for her aunt Emily Verco and completed a course in infant welfare. She accepted a job at the Adelaide City Council Health Department. Following her retirement at 60 she started working as a relief nurse at the Christian Rest Home and travelled to Europe and China, India and Bangkok. A member of the Lyceum Club, Betty Riggs participated in all the activities.

June Cochrane began nursing training at the Royal Adelaide Hospital in 1950 and became a nurse after a chronic disability prevented her from continuing as a clinical nurse. For nineteen years she was the Principal Nurse Educator at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital in Adelaide. She was an active member of the Royal Australian Nursing Federation and council member of the Royal College of Nursing Australia, becoming its Executive Director in 1981.

Unionist and activist Madge Cope was born in Yorkshire and migrated to Australia in 1915, aged 11. With her parents and two brothers she settled on a farm in Carnamah. She later married her neighbour, Harold Cope, and the pair had four children. Cope himself was born to an English father and an Australian mother.

During wartime, the Copes sold pies at Victoria Park. They grew tomatoes at Geraldton, then Guildford, where they also sold flowers. In 1966, while driving on a gravel road, Madge lost control on a bend and hit a truck. Harold was thrown from the vehicle and died on the road after telling the truck driver to look after his wife, who was trapped in the car.

Madge became involved with the Communist Party in Guildford, and was made a life member of the Guildford Association. She joined the Peace Movement and the Union of Australian Women. She also wrote short stories, two of which were published in the magazine Our Women. Madge died in 2001, aged 97 years.

Roma Gilchrist was first a member of the Modern Women’s Club before joining the Union of Australian Women, Western Australian Branch. She was vice-president in 1954 and president from 1957 until 1971.

Katharine Susannah Prichard, author, pacifist, Communist, indefatigable political activist, chose to live on the outskirts of Perth, Western Australia, for fifty years, from 1919 until her death in 1969. Her life is one of courage, determination, hard work, great joy and satisfaction, and tragedy. During her lifetime she developed an international reputation as a novelist, she was recognised as one of Australia’s foremost writers, and she established an almost legendary reputation locally as a political activist whose initiatives made a profound impact upon the lives of many West Australians. In the midst of such physical isolation and unsophisticated conservatism, how was her brilliant light able to shine so readily?

Annette Cameron was born in Middle Swan WA in 1920. Her interest in politics was sparked by the Spanish Civil War, prompting her to join the Modern Women’s Club, the Anti-Fascist League, and, in 1941, the Communist Party. She was an active campaigner for peace, human rights, and Aboriginal causes.

The Pan Pacific and South East Asian Women’s Association – South Australian (S.A.) Branch was active from 1928. Miss Lena Swann represented South Australia at the Pan-Pacific Conference held in Honolulu. In 1931 Dr. Constance Davey formed the South Australian Branch with Miss Swann as Honorary Secretary. It was originally composed of delegates from various women’s organizations, including the League of Women Voters, who were very helpful in the early days. Later, individual members were also accepted. The Association aimed to strengthen the bonds of peace by fostering better understanding and friendship among women of all Pacific and South East Asian areas. It also sought to promote co-operation among women of these regions for the study and improvement of social conditions. To achieve these aims, various methods were employed such as lectures, international nights, study groups and representation on various committees such as the Good Neighbour Council and the United Nations Association – South Australian Division. Dr. Davey remained in the Chair until the late 1940s or early 1950s and was replaced by the Reverend Winifred Kiek who was later elected vice-president of the National Association which formed in 1953. Early members included Ellinor Walker, Hilda Harris, Edith Caseley, and Mrs. Mountford.