Women Vote: They picked up the patter with amazing fluency
[Australasian 31 October 1903]
Burke Memorial Museum Beechworth
15 August - 16 November 2008
The ‘Women Vote: They Picked Up the Patter with Amazing Fluency’ exhibition tells the stories of the women of Beechworth and particularly those of the 154 women who signed the Monster Petition in 1891 that was presented to the Victorian Parliament to demonstrate women wanted the vote. It explores the considerable achievements of women and their in the public life to the present time.
‘In an extraordinary effort to gain the right to vote for all Victorian women, a handful of dedicated women took to the streets in 1891 to collect signatures for a petition to present to the Parliament of Victoria. The result was an impressive collection of close to 30,000 signatures from women from all walks of life.
Tabled in Parliament in September 1891, with the support of then Premier James Munro, the petition sought that ‘Women should Vote on Equal terms with Men'.
Now one of the State's archival treasures, the Women's Suffrage Petition (1891) reflects the dedicated work of those women, who went from door to door across Victoria to collect the signatures. Its tremendous length earned it the name of the ‘Monster Petition'. [From http://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/WomensPetition/]
Until 1901 women lacked basic political, economic and civil rights.
Before Federation women could not vote nor stand for any level of government. In Victoria, women did not have the right to vote until 1908. The public service had institutionalised inequalities of pay and promotion for women and severely limited choices of occupation, thus reflecting the unregulated discrimination normal in other areas of employment. Indigenous women and widows could not expect custody of their children. Divorce laws favoured men. Their status, their journey towards equity was underway.
A small group of women from Beechworth Arts Council headed by Cath O’Connor are researching the 154 women who signed the ‘Monster Petition from Beechworth and districts for the coming exhibition at the Burke Museum [and there are more in the small settlements such as Hurdle Flat, the One Mile and Stanley need to be included]. A copy of the names is available from the website given below, or at the Burke Museum. Anyone who can assist with family histories, photographs or objects that relate to any of these women please contact Cath O’Connor ph/fax 5728 2275 or e: cath.oconnor@bigpond.com
More information is available at www.parliament.vic.gov.au
BEECHWORTH ARTS COUNCIL
Arts Precinct, Beechworth at La Trobe
Po Box 111 BEECHWORTH 3747
Ph/Fax: 03 5728 3350
