Summary

Notice of traffic arrangements accompanying invitation from the Government of Victoria to Mrs Cluny Macpherson, mother of Hope Macpherson, to attend Morning Tea in the St Kilda Town Hall on Monday, 3rd March 1958 at 10.15am in recognition of her contribution to the Women's Organizations of Victoria, which Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, would also be attending.

Description of Content

Colour portrait of Hope Macpherson wearing a knitted top light olive green, collar edged in a lighter colour, pink bow in front on neck line, wearing glasses and not smiling. Image mounted on offwhite backing card that has some foxing.

Physical Description

Single sheet beige coloured paper printed in black.

Significance

The Hope (Macpherson) Black Collection is a significant addition to Museum Victoria's working lives collection, it reveals the journey of a woman from depression era Melbourne and illustrates the power of education. It also reveals the often discriminatory policies in place in Victoria before the equal opportunity developments of the late 20th century. In balance though it also exposes the somewhat free expression possible for empowered women in this period. Hope Macpherson clearly states that in her day to day work she never felt discrimination and believes she was given great opportunity to pursue her career and aspirations. However, on analysis her role was often shaped by her gender and its perceived strengths and weaknesses; she was dissuaded from applying to become a taxidermist as it was 'an unsuitable job for a woman', although part of the first group of female scientists allowed to travel to Macquarie Island they were not permitted to camp on land with the male crew for fear of inciting passions. And finally after a distinguished career she was forced to resign her tenure as Australia's first female Curator when she married late in life, as a consequence of the Marriage bar.

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