Professional Documents
Culture Documents
When we think of Australian womens rights champions at the turn of the twentieth century,
Victorias Vida Goldstein and Annette Bear-Crawford stand out as activists and women who
worked hard to end womens oppression and to give them a voice that previously wasnt heard.
These women were committed to womens causes throughout their lives and rightly deserve our
admiration and respect. Information on the deeds and successes of women like these is easy to
find, but there were many others who worked hard, improving the situation of women and
making substantial contributions to society, who dont make it into the history books. These
women are often dismissed because of their privileged position and wealth. They achieved
success through different means. By using their wealth and appealing to their circles of
important contacts, they had the ability to provide resources and leadership to further important
causes of the time such as womens education, health, politics and the plight of the poor. This
article examines the contributions made by one of these women, Janet, Lady Clarke.
ECONOMIC DEPRESSION
Melbournes land boom collapsed in 1888
and a severe drought in the same year
exposed how fragile a pastoral based
economy could be. By 1893 banks were
crashing in Victoria and other parts of the
country as British investors pulled out of an
unstable financial system.i The economic
collapse revealed the extent of the poverty in
which most small farmers and city workers
lived. Unemployment drastically rose and
charities were overwhelmed. The depression
was country-wide and it is estimated that
approximately one third of the population
was unemployed.ii Although the depression
lifted in the mid-1890s another severe
drought hit the country and lasted until
1905, this meant that less money came to the
Government through wealth and taxes and
government spending was severely reduced,
again affecting jobs and living conditions in
the cities.iii
Figure 2: Janet Clarke Hall (Circa 1920s) from Picture Collection at the State Library of Victoria
SPEAKING OUT
National Council of Women
Janet Clarkes interest in the status of
women was also evident in her formation and
leadership of the National Council of Women
(NCW). In London in 1899 she attended the
Quinquennial meeting of the International
Council of Women where the then president,
Lady Aberdeen, asked her to form a NCW in
Victoria.
The
Victorian
Branch
was
subsequently formalised at Clivedon (the
Clarkes East Melbourne residence) on 19
March 1902 where she was elected president,
a position she held until her death in 1909.x
The Victorian Branch brought together four
womens associations The Womens
Christian
Temperance
Union,
Young
Womens Christian Association, Jewish
Womens Guild and the Austral Salon.xi The
NCW was concerned with wide ranging issues
relating to womens social reform and the
legal status of women, believing that women
had a large contribution to make in relation
to the establishment of social policy. The
initial aims of the Council were to establish
bonds between various existing womens
societies, advance the interests of women and
children, and to consult on issues in relation
to the welfare of the family, the State and the
Commonwealth.xii
Projects undertaken after inauguration
included a campaign to replace male prison
officers in womens prisons with police
matrons, and in 1907 the establishment of a
rehabilitation, care and education centre for
those suffering from particular health
problems The Talbot Colony of Epileptics.
This was a significant advance as these
patients previously would have been placed
in asylums and reformatories.
Australian Womens National League
Furthering her political interests, The AWNL
was officially launched at Clivedon on 10 May
1904 and Janet Clarke was elected as its first
president, she also held this post until her
death.
One of the main aims of the AWNL was to
encourage its members to use their voting
power to overcome the threat of socialism,
which the League and Janet Clarke saw as
one of Australias biggest threats.xiii In 1905
in a speech to AWNL members, Janet Clarke
announced that with other organisations with
the same political beliefs the Anti-Socialist
Alliance had been formed with a voting
membership of 27,000.xiv
Under Janet Clarkes leadership the AWNL
Figure 4 The Funeral Procession Leaving Clivedon Punch Magazine, Melbourne 5 May 1909 p.14
Shortly after Janet Clarkes death a committee of 40 people was formed to consider a suitable
memorial that would recognise her considerable contributions to the nation. Funded by public
subscription of 1,400 and after consultation with artists and trustees of the public library, it
was decided to erect a pagoda in the Queen Victoria Gardens. This pagoda would be a public
space and large enough for musical performances and military bands.
Figure 5 A view of the Janet, Lady Clarke memorial pavilion from the pond in the foreground c.1939. From Picture
Collection at the State Library of Victoria
The memorial was formally presented on 4 September 1913 in front of a large crowd by
Archdeacon Hindley who said:
the memorial would speak to all generations of a lady
who was proud of the city of Melbourne and
did much to promote the well-being of her fellow citizensxxi
Endnotes:
i
M. Peel & C Twomey, A History of Australia, New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2010 p. 122
Ibid p. 123
iii
Ibid
iv
Ibid p. 119
v
Clarke, Janet Marion 1851-1909, The Australian Womens Register, Australian Womens Archive Project,
http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE1134b.htm
Updated 16 September 2003, accessed 8 October 2015
vi
Annette Lewis, Janet Lady Clarke Leader in the Good Work, Melbourne, Deakin University, 2010 p.6
vii
University of Melbourne, Janet Lady Clarke, A lifetime of giving, Melbourne, The University of Melbourne, 2009 p.3
viii
Ibid p.4
ix
Geoffrey Blainey, A Centenary History of The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, University Press, 1957, p. 126
x
Lewis p. 194
xi
Ibid
xii
Jane Carey, National Council of Victoria, The Australian Womens Register, Australian Womens Archive Project,
http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE0501b.htm Updated: 9 June 2011, accessed 8 October 2015
xiii
Lewis, p.p. 208-210
xiv
Ibid
xv
Ibid p. 223
xvi
Argus Newspaper, Melbourne 29 April, 1909
xvii
Lewis, Chapter 6
xviii
C.E.Sayers The Womens.A Century of Service 1856-1956, Melbourne, Renwick Pride, 1956
xix
Herald Newspaper, Melbourne 31 May 1905
xx
Lewis, p. 224
xxi
Lewis, p. 226
ii
Figures:
1 Portrait of Lady Janet Clarke c 1904 University of Melbourne Archives
2 Janet Clarke Hall (Circa 1920s) from Picture Collection at the State Library of Victoria
3 Letter from Secretary News Boys Society the Argus Newspaper, Melbourne, 4 June 1904
4 The Funeral Procession Leaving Clivedon Punch Magazine, Melbourne 5 May 1909 p.14
5 A view of the Janet, Lady Clarke memorial pavilion from the pond in the foreground c.1939. From Picture Collection
at the State Library of Victoria
Bibliography
Blainey, Geoffrey, A Centenary History of The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, University Press,
1957
Davidson, Graeme, The Rise and Fall of Marvellous Melbourne, Melbourne, Melbourne University Press, 1978
Lewis, Annette, Janet Lady Clarke Leader in the Good Work, Melbourne, Deakin University, 2010
Munns, Joy Rupertswood, A Living History, Melbourne, J Munns, 1987
Peel, M & Twomey, C, A History of Australia, New York, Palgrave Macmillan, 2010
Sayers, C.E, The Womens.A Century of Service 1856-1956, Melbourne, Renwick Pride, 1956
University of Melbourne, Janet Lady Clarke, A lifetime of giving, Melbourne, The University of Melbourne, 2009
Newspapers
Age, 16 April, 1891
Argus, 4 June 1904, 5 October 1904, 9 April 1909
Geelong Advertiser, 14 April 1904
Herald, 31 May 1905
Punch 29 April, 1909, 5 May 1909
Internet
http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs Australian Womens Register, Clarke, Janet Marion 1851-1909, National
Council of Women
http://trove.nla.gov.au newspaper articles, images of Lady Clarke,
http://www.slv.vic.gov.au images Lady Clarke Memorial, Janet Clarke Hall
http://archives.unimelb.edu.au/ Image Lady Clarke, Janet Clarke Hall