National Foundation for Australian Women
NFAW

Women's history

 Australian Women’s Archives Project

The National Foundation for Australian Women (NFAW) established the Australian Women's Archives Project (AWAP) in 2000 to build knowledge and recognition of the contribution made by women to Australia.

AWAP is a joint project with The University of Melbourne. Staff in the School of Historical Studies provide leadership in the area of historical research. Technical innovation and support to the project is provided by research fellows in the University's eScholarship Research Centre.

AWAP is now an important and authoritative resource for information about the roles of women in Australian history. The activities of AWAP include:

  • Conducting original research and compiling information about women's history
  • Making that information available on the web through the Australian Women's Register
  • Celebrating groups of women including sportswomen, migrants, scientists and parliamentarians in the AWAP Showcase
  • Encouraging Australian women and women’s organisations to discover and preserve their stories by depositing their records in archives and libraries for the use of further generations.

AWAP's work is constantly developing and improving as a result of the donations and grants given to the Project. AWAP does not repeat the work undertaken by others (such as the Australian Dictionary of Biography) but provides links to other sources of information and tools where funding permits. Many individuals and organisations have generously given financial assistance and support to the Project.

Australian Women’s Register

The searchable-on-line Australian Women’s Register is a valuable and growing source of biographical data about Australian women and their organisations, with hyper-links to the archival repositories and libraries where their records are held and to other sources of information. Women and women’s organisations are listed alphabetically. You’ll also be able to search by functional classification, for example, ‘P’ covers physicists, politicians, pharmacists, pacifists and many more.

AWAP Showcase

Particular groups of Australian women are recognised through the AWAP Showcase. The Showcase consists of informative articles and a collection of on-line biographies that recognise a particular group of women. Examples are women who received awards under the Imperial honours system, migrant women, women candidates for NSW Parliament, and women in science.

Organisations and/or individuals with a particular interest often fund these collections. For example, through its Women's Leadership and Development Program, the Australian Government provided funding for She's Game: Women Making Australian Sporting History. 

Preserving our history

Records about women provide the basis of all AWAP’s work. To ensure records are available in the future, AWAP promotes the keeping and care of personal records and encourages individuals and organisations to deposit records appropriately in available archives and libraries.

National institutions preserve the papers of well known women and significant organisations. The AWAP register will tell you that the National Library of Australia holds the archives of Judith Wright (1915-2000) poet and conservationist, the John Oxley Library in the State Library of Queensland holds the records of the Queensland Country Women's Association from 1922 onwards and the Mortlock Library at the State Library of South Australia holds the papers of Dame Roma Mitchell (1913-2000) the first woman governor of an Australian state.

But there are many smaller institutions with fascinating archival collections. The Warringah Library's local studies collection at Dee Why NSW holds the records of surfboard rider and swimming instructor Isabel Letham (1899-1995). The Geelong City Council's Heritage Centre (Vic) holds the records of local Girl Guides groups from the 1930s - 1960s. The Charles Sturt University Regional Archives in Wagga, NSW holds the records of the Coolamon Mothers' Union (1947-85) and the Italian Historical Society (Vic) holds the records of Lena Santospirito (1895-1993) a community worker and migrant community advocate.

If you are the custodian of the papers of a woman or a women's organisations, AWAP encourages you to consider preserving them in a suitable archives or library for future generations.

The AWAP Executive Officer can help you to find a suitable collecting institution. You can also find all the archives and libraries whose records are listed on the Australian Women's Register by browsing under Repositories.  There is a directory of archives on the Australian Society of Archivists website.

If you prefer to keep your family or organisational records yourself, it is still possible to make researchers aware of them by allowing AWAP to list them on the Register as in ‘Private Hands (contact Australian Women's Archives Project)'. AWAP will pass on any research enquiries for such records to the nominated contact person. You are welcome to discuss details of such arrangements with the AWAP Executive Officer.  

Advice on looking after records and archives

If you need advice on storing and preserving your records at home you may find it useful to refer to:

If you need advice on looking after the records of an organisation you may find it useful to consult:

Acknowledgements

The Australian Women’s Archives Project has received assistance from many individuals and organisations. We would like to acknowledge in particular the following who have provided support and financial assistance to the Project:

  • Mary Owen
  • the University of Melbourne
  • Professor Patricia Grimshaw and the History Department, the University of Melbourne
  • Gavan McCarthy and the eScholarship Research Centre, the University of Melbourne
  • the Commonwealth Office for Women
  • the National Library of Australia
  • the National Archives of Australia
  • the Victorian Public Record Office
  • the Myer Foundation
  • the Australian Research Council
  • the Commonwealth Department of Veterans’ Affairs;
  • the (then) Commonwealth Department of Immigration & Multicultural & Indigenous Affairs
  • the ACT Office for Women
  • the ACT Government Heritage Awards
  • the NSW Government Sesquicentenary Fund
  • Joanna Baevski
  • Chris Foley
  • the Pamela Denoon Trust
  • the Helen Macpherson Smith Schutt Trust
  • Fleur Spitzer
  • Tarlina Association
  • NSW Office for Women

 

Contact NFAW  | Site help  |  Copyright   |  Privacy