Feather Curlers & Cleaners

Sydney Gazette, 11 August 1825 Not an occupation I can find out much about. Feather curlers were used by milliners to produce suitable feathers for their hats. However, if you read down through these advertisements you’ll see they’re offering a different, if related, service. Bearing in mind here, hats were necessary fashion accessory, and if…

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On the trail of the lady detective

Lady detectives seem to have come late to Australia. The concept of them was known throughmost of the Victorian era, as they were subject of some popular novels, including Revelations of a Lady Detective  (1864) which was advertised, widely, for many, many, many years in regional Australian newspapers. (It made searching… fun.) Tracing them was also…

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100 Years of Disappointed, Disgruntled, Discredited Husbands

Sydney Gazette, 16 October 1803 Sydney Gazette, 19 June 1808 Sydney Gazette, 12 February 1810 Hobart Town Gazette, 19 October 1816 Hobart Town Gazette, 12 August 1820 Sydney Gazette, 16 October 1823 Sydney Gazette, 23 October 1823 Sydney Gazette, 9 January 1826 The Australian, 10 September 1828 Sydney Monitor, 20 September 1828 Sydney Gazette, 21…

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Fruit seller

Caption: “Woman [possibly Aboriginal or Chinese?] selling fruit from small barrow” Sydney, ca. 1885-1890, photographed by Arthur K. Syer From a series of Sydney street scenes, (Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales)

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Mary Sullivan: female searcher

Adelaide Observer, 7 December 1872 Express & Telegraph, 1 August 1873 South Australian Register, 14 November 1873 Express & Telegraph, 31 January 1873 South Australian Chronicle, 21 November 1874 South Australian Chronicle, 4 November 1874 Express & Telegraph, 17 May 1882 Adelaide Observer, 23 July 1892 South Australian Register, 1 August 1893

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Servants Training Insitute

This article in the Illustrated Australian News was accompanied by a full page illustration, which is also available at the State LIbrary of Victoria. It is from this that the illustrations above and below come. (The second article was not illustrated. I’ve just combined it with the illustrations from the first because they fit better.)…

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Mrs Spearman

Most obituaries about business women focus on their activities after the death of the husband. This one talks about her involvement in the business alongside him. ANOTHER old colonist was yesterday removed by death in the person of Mrs Mary Ann Spearman, of Landale-street, Invermay. The deceased lady was the widow of the late Mr…

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Miss Beeton

This necklace of king maireener shells on two-stranded linen thread was probably given to James Peppiatt, the proprietor of the Old Brisbane Hotel in Launceston, by its maker Lucy Beeton. She was the daughter of Thomas (John) Beeton and Emmerenna (Tralwoolway Clan) Necklace & caption from The First Tasmanians: Our story gallery at the Queen…

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Whereas My Husband… Or, What’s Good For Gander

Sydney Gazette, 28 July 1821 This is sequel to 100 Years of Disappointed, Disgruntled, Discredited Husbands. I have transcribed the longer advertisements/letters where the text might be too small to read and included the image, except where it’s an ongoing debate wherein I have just included the text. TO THE PUBLIC.— WHEREAS Mr. Thomas Arkell…

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Votes for Women: the people

With the addition of two words,  the Commonwealth Franchise Act 1902 (pictured above) extended the right to vote in Federal elections to women as well as men.  Of the women who campaigned for this, you don’t hear much so I have started collection information about those that fall within the scope of this blog (active before…

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