Mary Booth was a woman of startling contradictions – one of Australia’s first female doctors, a pioneering feminist and nationalist. She was also a devoted imperial loyalist, an antiquarian, and an entrepreneur. She championed infant welfare, war commemoration, environmental reform, and the place of women in public life, all while navigating a society deeply shaped by gender and race. Feted as the ‘Queen of Anzac’ and hailed as the ‘professional mother’ of Australian soldiers, her legacy is far-reaching – from founding the Women’s Club and Anzac Fellowship of Women to reshaping ideas of national identity and womanhood. In this joint presentation, Rae Frances and Bruce Scates will examine Mary Booth’s problematic legacy and consider some of the many challenges her biographers faced.

Rae Frances is Emeritus Professor of History at the Australian National University. She is internationally recognised for her contributions to social, gender and labour history, particularly to the understanding of the intersections between work, gender, race, class and war.

Bruce Scates is a Fulbright Scholar and Emeritus Professor of History at the Australian National University. He has pioneered new forms of life writing, published widely on the culture of commemoration and the human cost of war, and is a major contributor to debates in social, labour and gender history.

Join Zoom Meeting: https://anu.zoom.us/j/88902124291?pwd=f9S8I7GgtJwog6OkB0E3BQTxq77WdN.1 

Meeting ID: 889 0212 4291

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