National Pioneer Women’s Hall of Fame presents the
HerStory Archive
This is a collection of stories which tell of the achievements of over 1,500 pioneering women in various fields. We are proud that our HerStory Archive brings Australian women and their achievements to light, and we hope that you enjoy discovering these inspiring women.
This archive contains more information about some women than others. As a small, not-for-profit museum, our limited resources often prevent us from collecting as much information as we would like. The information we do have, however, brings Australian women and their achievements to light. If you have additional information on any woman who features in our Herstory Archive, please contribute it here.
HerStory Home
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HUTTON, Beatrice May
Born 16/07/1893, Died 7/10/1990
Also known as: Bea
She became the chief draftsperson of Hocking and Palmer [Queensland] during Edwin Morton Hockings' war service.
1916 - First woman associate member of Queensland Institute of… -
MCCAFFERY, Effie Gwyneth
Also known as: née Downie, Billie
1935- The first female hairdresser in Northern Territory. Apprenticed to a Miss Jockel, who ran a hairdressing salon in Collins Street, Melbourne, Victoria.In Alice Springs, as hostess…
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ROLAND, Betty
Born 22/07/1903, Died 12/02/1996
Also known as: née Mary Isabel Maclean/McLean, Betty M. Davies, Mary Isabel Davies
Wrote her first play The Touch of Silk in 1928. Also known for her four volume autobiography. In 1951 she legally changed her name to Betty Roland.
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CHILD, Gloria Joan Liles
Born 1921, Died 23/02/2013
Also known as: Joan
First woman Australian Labor Party (ALP) member in the House of Representatives (1974) Australia's first woman Speaker of either House of the Federal Parliament (House of…
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NECK, Dorothy Annie
Born 1898
Also known as: née Meyers, Anne
Daughter of Charlie and Annie née Williams Meyers.Dorothy attended Muirden College, Adelaide, South Australia. ”Later she joined the staff of Charles Moore, then the biggest…
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MORTON, Catherine
1945 - Writer of short stories for magazines while living on Ammaroo Station where her husband was manager.
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BUCHANAN, Susan
Born 1946
Susan Buchanan was the first woman head of New South Wales' pre-eminent dental hospital, the United Dental Hospital, Sydney (Director of Dental Services: 1999). Susan graduated…
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NEUMANN, Hanna
Born 12/02/1914, Died 14/11/1971
Also known as: née Johanna von Caemmerer
1964 - First female Professor of Pure Mathematics at Australian National University, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory. 1946-63 - Hanna was a Lecturer
and Senior Lecturer in… -
LEHMANN, Caroline Wilhelmina
Born 15/3/1873, Died 8/5/1955
Also known as: Minnie, Caroline Dux
Pioneer of Parnaroo and Clare districts of South Australia.Charity worker.
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LAMBERT, Roslyn Marjory
Born 2/4/1943
Believed to be the first woman in the banking industry to be granted male pay rate.
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MONRO, Tanya Mary
Born 1973
Winner of The Weekend Australian Magazine's Next 100 Emerging Leaders in Science.
An award-winning Australian physicist known for her work in photonics. Physicist.1995 -… -
LAXON, Sheila
First woman to train a Melbourne Cup winner.
2002 - Made an Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to racing. -
VERSTAK, Tania
Also known as: née Verstak
1962 - First and only Australian to win Miss International Beauty competition. 1962 - Crowned Miss New South Wales.1962 - Crowned Miss Australia.
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BRYANT, Lexia
Born 24/11/1940, Died 20/5/2015
Lexia Bryant was the first woman President of the Australian College of Rural and Remote Medicine (1999). She was also the Chair of the Women in Rural Practice group which developed…
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O'REILLY, Anna Maria
1825 - One of first women to own and operate a hat shop in their Castlereagh Street residence, Sydney, New South Wales.
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STIRLING, Harriet Adelaide
Born 1878, Died 19/05/1943
“Miss Stirling was the first woman president of the old State Children's Council, and member of the Children's Welfare and Public Relief Board until she resigned through ill…
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GREGORY, Metha
Born 27/08/1886, Died 11/08/1958
Also known as: née Zimmerman, Meta, Matha
Pioneer of Alice Springs, Northern Territory and Oodnadatta, South Australia.
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KELL, Elizabeth Mary
Born 1791, Died 22/1/1827
Pioneer of old Sydney Town and the Illawarra district. Elizabeth arrived in Sydney Cove in 1819 aboard the “Minerva” with her husband George and three children (one born on board)…
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CROOK, Kathleen Winifred
Rose (Bertha) Crook and her husband William operated the water whip at Wycliffe Well, a depot for watering travelling stock. As young girls their daughter Doreen and Kathleen did…
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CASWELL, Tricia
First female Executive Director of the Australian Conservation Foundation (1992-1995); first woman General Secretary of the Technical Teachers Union of Victoria (1979-1992); first…
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CARDONA, Elna Joy Cardona
Born 18/3/1956
Also known as: Joy Cardona
Joy Cardona is the first woman in Australian Rules to officiate a representative match. This was the Northern Territory versus Hawthorn in 1991, and she still has the score card! She…
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STOTT, Muriel Millicent
Born 1889, Died 1985
Also known as: Muriel Leech, Muriel Davies
1912 - One of Victoria's first female architects trained as an apprentice in architectural offices.
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TEUBNER, Jillian Kay
Born 19/10/1941, Died 12/11/2002
First female Woodville High School Student to gain a PhD.
First South Australian woman to gain a PhD in Organic Chemistry. Scientist and Medical Educator. -
WICKHAM, Tracey Lee
Born 24/11/1962
Also known as: Tiger
1978 - Wickham was the World Champion for the 400 m and 800 m freestyle.
1978 - Made a Member of the Order of the British Empire.
1978 and 1982 - Won gold in both events at the… -
LAWRENCE, Marjorie Florence
Born 17/2/1907, Died 13/1/1979
1946 - Received the cross of the Légion d'honneur, France.
1976 - Appointed Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. Former singer who, after contracting… -
MOTTEE, Matina
Born 1931
Also known as: née Kassimatis
1994 - Awarded a Member of the Order of Australia, for Community Work with Migrant Women in Sydney. With Beryl Mulder, convened the Association of Non-English Speaking Background…
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BROWNLEE, Helen
Helen Brownlee was the first Australian woman to gain international status in canoeing when selected to judge slalom at the Munich Olympics (1972). She was first woman President of…
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MCCRAE, Georgiana Huntly
Born 15/3/1804, Died 24/5/1890
Also known as: née Gordon
At age 17 - She won a silver medal for portrait painting, of her grandfather the fourth Duke of Gordon, and it was exhibited at the Royal Academy in London. 1840 - Arrived in Victoria…
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MCKAY, Judith
Born 12/06/1949
The first female curator at the Australian War Memorial, Canberra. 1988 - Began working at Queensland Museum.1994 - Co-author, with Donald Watson, of the major reference Queensland…
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GAGLIARDI, Maria Concetta
Born 20/10/1911, Died 13/09/1998
Also known as: née Ciccone, Concetta, Connie
Concetta and Giuseppe GAGLIARDI opened the first Alice Springs “night spot,” a dance hall, which was part of their complex opposite Melanka, in which they also sold meals and the first…
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LUCAS, Sue
2000 - First woman crew and first Victorian to win the Institute of Ambulance Officers (Australia) National Clinical Excellence competition.
2000 - Won Victorian Clinical Excellence… -
JARRETT, Patricia Irene
Born 9/3/1911, Died 28/8/1990
Also known as: Pat. Nee Herschell. Her names were registered as Irene Herschell, but she was always known as Patricia.
Grand Old Lady of the Melbourne Herald. Editor of Women's pages in the Daily Sun. Celebrated 25 years of continuous service with the Herald and Weekly Times - the only woman…
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LICHTENBERG, Anna
Lecturer in Information Technology (IT) (now PhD and consultant at Curtin University. First woman involved in the IT department at the Community College in Alice Springs, Northern…
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BELLAMY, Evelyn, Nee Oliffe
Born 1907, Died 1984
Also known as: Paddy
1940s - First woman to drive alone between Adelaide and Alice Springs.
1947 - First woman in Alice Springs to actually register a business - the first exclusive womens' store in… -
ROLTON, Karen Louise
Born 21/11/1974
2000 - First woman to play Men's Grade cricket in South Australia. Vice Captain Australian women's One Day Cricket team which won the World Cup in India in 1997.early 2018 -…
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ALLCHIN, Mary David
Born 17/5/1913
Pioneer of Central Australia. Arrived in Alice Springs in 1941, took her final vows with the Catholic Church in 1942 and helped establish Arltunga mission in 1942. Also worked on…
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PRENTICE, Una Gailey
Born 6/11/1913, Died 25/03/1986
Also known as: née Bick, Dr Una Prentice
1938 - First woman to graduate from Law in Queensland University, and the first woman graduate to be admitted to the Queensland Bar.
First woman Barrister to appear as Prosecutor on… -
WARREN, Ellen
Ellen was a staunch member of the Tasmanian branch executive of the Australian Women Pilots Association, and celebrated her 70th birthday in 1994 by flying a 172 on Saturday and the…
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LAHY, Mary Patricia
Born 24/5/1928, Died 11/5/2004
1979 - Became Sydney University's first woman Dean of Arts.
1992 - She was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia, services to higher education. 1963 - Graduated with… -
BARTLETT, Faye
One of the first women police in the Northern Territory. All commenced their recruit training (with a number of men) in February 1961, and the course “passed out” on 10 April 1961. All…
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MCPHERSON, Ola Mary
1940 - First woman graduate from Queensland University Veterinary School. The University of Queensland has a prize named after her, Ola Mary MacPherson Prize.
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TONER, Pauline
Born 16/03/1935, Died 03/03/1989
Also known as: Hon. Pauline Therese Toner
1982 - First woman State Cabinet Minister in Victoria
(Hon.) 1969 - Joined the Australian Labor Party
1973-1979 - Councillor for the Shire of Diamond Valley.
1977-1988 - First female… -
MITCHELL, Roma Flinders
Born 2/10/1913, Died 05/03/2000
1962 - First woman Queen’s Counsel in Australia.
1965 - First female Supreme Court judge in Australia.
1972 - First woman deputy chancellor of a university.
1981-82 – First human… -
MCNAMARA, Blanche
Born 1859, Died 1900
1897-1900 - Blanche McNamara was the pioneering first woman school inspector in South Australia and also the first in Australia. She was appointed specifically to pay attention to the…
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KIBBLE, Nita Bernice
Born 8/6/1879, Died 4/2/1962
1919-43 — first woman librarian at the State Library of New South Wales. Miss Kibble set up the Library's first research department in 1918. She was appointed the Library's…
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PRAED, Annie
Born 4/01/1872, Died 26/12/1948
Also known as: née Spraggs, Hannah
1895-1900 - One of first women to be practicing dentistry in Australia.
1903 - She became the first woman dental graduate in New South Wales to receive the L. D. S.
1905 -… -
LAWTON, Margaret Doreen
Born 18/4/1923, Died 18/5/2002
Also known as: Peg, Peggy, Peg Gooden
1998 - Awarded Order of Australia in Australia Day Honours List, community service to the Flinders Medical Centre Volunteer Service. 22 years volunteering at Flinders Medical Centre,…
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PRESS, Beth
From Yuanduma - Chair of Council Indigenous Advisory Council - to suggest ways to win Indigenous disadvantage.
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LITTLEJOHN, Emma Linda Palmer
Born 11/12/1883, Died 21/3/1949
Also known as: née Teece, Linda Littlejohn, Emma Teece, Emma Tilden
Broadcaster and Public Speaker 1929 - Founding member of 'Open Door International' to promote women worker's rights.President of Equal Opportunity Rights International…