Patrisha Hurley held addresses the 2018 State Conference in Armidale (Simon Scott/The Guardian/Australscope).
THE WOMEN WHO CHANGED
COUNTRY AUSTRALIA
Celebrating 100 years of the Country Women’s Association of New South Wales Liz Harfull
Women gather for the inaugural meeting of the Alectown branch, 1963.
CONTENTS
6 79 1733 45 5773 85101 111135 157181 201219 237253 269 291294 306307 311
Foreword by Her Excellency the Honourable Margaret Beazley AC QC, Governor of New South Wales Foreword by Stephanie Stanhope, State President Introduction
Part One: FOUNDATIONS The bushwoman’s constant struggle The bushwomen’s conference The divide between country and city
Part Two: THE EARLY YEARS 1922–1932 Build and they shall come Horses’ rights for mothers A changing of the guard Hard times
Part Three: THE GOLDEN YEARS 1932–1972 From wool to war 1932–1942 War and scones 1942–1952 Social justice and crowning glories 1952–1962 Troubles on the horizon 1962–1972
Part Four: A CHANGING WORLD 1972–2022 Time to change 1972–1982 Rural strife and the power of advocacy 1982–1992 Knit one, purl one 1992–2002 A new millennium 2002–2012 Hitting the gas and dire disasters 2012–2021 Epilogue At a Glance Selected bibliography Endnotes Index
PART ON E
Foundations
Mrs Donaghue in theatkitchen, Milking shed ‘Dunvegan’c. 1905, Oakwood, Inverell area, c. 1910
Above: Previous page:
(James Benson, State Library of NSW). (State Library of NSW).
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The bushwoman’s constant struggle Embraced by the sweeping branches of a Chinese elm, the gravestone is small and simple. A plain cross cut from grey granite sits on two tiers of square granite blocks. Faded lettering carved into the lower block reveals this is the final resting place of Jack Munro. Baby Jack was just a few weeks past his first birthday when he died from croup in the cold, damp autumn of 1911. Instead of being buried in the nearest town like other family members, he was laid to rest on his parents’ sheep and cattle station. The lone grave is not tucked away on a hillside or in a discreet grove near the homestead. It is set in clear view of the front verandah, where his heartbroken mother could watch over him. Grace Munro is not remembered by descendants for her sentimentality, but family stories say that she never recovered from the loss of her youngest child. She determined to have no more children and a photo of Jack stood on her dressing table for the rest of her long life. People who knew her believe the tragic death also drove her fierce determination to build one of Australia’s most iconic organisations. An organisation that gave a voice to country women and delivered the support they so desperately needed. Life on the land holds its challenges even in today’s world. For many women living in rural areas 100 years ago, the hardship was unimaginable. Running a household was bone-wearying work in an era when there was no power or running water in most farmhouses, let alone labour-saving devices such as washing machines and dishwashers, or adequate heating and cooling systems. Then there were the daily outdoor chores, which usually fell to women too – milking and feeding one or more dairy cows to supply the household, tending chickens and pigs for eggs and meat, maintaining an essential vegetable garden and at least a few fruit trees, and bringing in, if not chopping, firewood for the kitchen stove so they could boil a kettle and prepare meals. Dust storms and drought, bushfires and floods, mouse plagues and hordes of flies often exacerbated their daily woes, bringing financial hardship and testing body and spirit. No hospitals or professional maternity care, inadequate schools, few telephones, rough roads and sparse transport services added to the sense that they had been forgotten by city dwellers and decision-makers. But worst of all for many was the loneliness, especially in the more sparsely populated areas, where opportunities to engage with other women were limited and trips into the nearest town a rare event. By the early 1900s the plight of country women and their families was occupying the minds of more than a few people willing to do something about it.
PART T WO
The Early Years
1922-1932
PART TH R EE
The Golden Years
1932-1972
Marie Schneider from Narrandera oiling the steam traction engine, and Barbara Roberts and Gwen Osland preparing totraining ear-mark lambs during Land Army at ‘Billabong’. , 1940 Right and below:
(Gordon Short, Sydney
Morning Herald)
CWAcamouflage volunteers making nets at theStreet, workroom in George 1944 Right:
(Eric Charles Johnston, Australian War Memorial).
F rom wool to war 1 932–1 942
policy of appeasement, Ada Beveridge reminded members: ‘All we can do is to trust our leaders. I ask you to keep on praying that the action of our leaders was right, and to hope that we are facing the dawn of a new era.’148 Ada’s loyalty to authorities and deep personal faith in God did not prevent her taking a pragmatic approach to preparing for the worst. In a stirring address to the Riverina Group conference in October 1938, she told delegates the whole of Australia should know the CWA was ready to serve if an emergency arose. Meanwhile, training in first aid, home nursing and physical fitness was organised for members so they were well prepared. ‘Even if war still keeps away from our shores, our women will be the better citizens for this training and usefulness for any other emergencies as floods, bush fires or epidemics,’ Ada explained.149
And so to war On 3 September 1939 anxious Australians gathered around their wireless sets to hear Prime Minister Robert Menzies sombrely proclaim that they were now at war with Germany. Within weeks, the government announced plans to form an expeditionary force of some 20,000 men and bolster the country’s part-time militia. The CWA was quick to marshal its members too, while offering encouragement and support through the words of its President. In many ways, Ada Beveridge was the CWA’s equivalent of Great Britain’s wartime leader, Winston Churchill, famous for his oratory. Described as having ‘almost magic power’ as a public speaker, Ada also wrote inspiring messages via the Association’s monthly journal. ‘We live in an age when women have learnt to organise, and we realise the power that has come into our hands through organisation,’ Ada Beveridge said in the first edition of The Countrywoman in New South Wales published after the declaration. ‘I pray to God that we may fulfil the obligations that will now be put upon us… not only to bring greater safety and comfort into our lives, but to be a powerful factor in human affairs, to stand shoulder to shoulder with our men and help them in every way… We must keep calm, firm and united and keep our morale unbroken, for therein lies the first great job of woman.’150 CWA branches reacted to the declaration of war with some bewilderment, wondering if it would be possible to carry on. ‘… and they started wiring and writing to me asking if they could go over in a body to the Red Cross, thinking this was the only organisation through which they could do war work,’ Ada recalled. ‘So I hastily summoned our Executive and we defined a policy under which to work while the Empire is at war.’151 In October 1939 the Executive asked the State Handicraft Committee and the Metropolitan Group to join forces and form a CWA War Workers’ Committee. Chaired by Ruth Fairfax, this committee was responsible for establishing a central comforts depot in Sydney, where branches could send items to improve life for enlisted men. The committee was also tasked with distributing patterns and supplies to members who wanted to support the war effort by knitting and sewing. Within days, a large room was secured rent free on the third
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PART FO U R
A Changing World
1972-2022