Community
31 October, 2023
Info sought on past businesswomen
DID you, your mother, grandmother, aunt, sister or female cousin run a business in Warrnambool before 1980?
Dr Catherine Bishop is researching a history of Australian businesswomen since 1880 and Warrnambool is one of her focus towns.
Historian Dr Catherine Bishop is the award-winning author of Minding Her Own Business: Colonial Businesswomen in Sydney, Women Mean Business: Colonial Businesswomen in New Zealand, and Too Much Cabbage and Jesus Christ: Australia’s ‘Mission Girl’ Annie Lock.
She is looking for stories of women in business – for tales of publicans and shopkeepers, pharmacists and photographers, farmers and physiotherapists.
Businesswomen include those who had part-time enterprises, who were involved in family businesses and who had ‘side-hustles’.
“I’m also keen to hear about women who were conwomen, brothel keepers and bookies … surely there must be at least one of these in Warrnambool’s rich history,” Dr Bishop said.
Dr Bishop is in Warrnambool until November 8 and will be delving into the archives at the Warrnambool Heritage Centre as well as giving some talks.
She will be at the RHSV Regional Seminar tomorrow (October 28) and at the BPW dinner on November 7.
Dr Bishop also wants to hear from anyone who has information about entrepreneurial women in Warrnambool’s past.
If you can help please contact her at Catherine.Bishop@mq.edu.au.
