Maternity Attendance in the County of Bourke, Melbourne, Victoria, 1848-1880

In a field of work that was largely unregulated until 1915, evidence that highlights the context of maternity attendance and midwifery practice is thin. In this presentation, I will highlight sources of evidence that offer a window on this intensely private realm and discuss the limitations of that evidence. Focussing on examples of practice in the County of Bourke during the years 1849-1879, inclusive, I will discuss what the available evidence tells us about maternity attendance in mid-nineteenth century Victoria.

Madonna Grehan OAM is an independent historian. A Registered Nurse and Midwife, she has a PhD in history (Melb.) and is Honorary Fellow in the Melbourne School of Health Sciences. Madonna’s research interests centre on the history of women and society in Australia since its occupation by Europeans, particularly maternity care.

Madonna is an interviewer for the National Library’s Oral History and Folklore Collection. She is a Past President of the Australian and New Zealand Society of the History of Medicine, Immediate Past President of the Medical History Society of Victoria, and in her 16^th year of volunteer social-history tour-guiding at Melbourne’s Abbotsford Convent.

Surrey Hills Historical Society AGM from 7 – 8pm

Madonna’s talk will be followed by supper ($4.50 for non-members)

Chandler Room, Surrey Hills Neighbourhood Centre, 157 Union Road

Parking in Union Road and in the new section of railway car park recently part-opened in nearby Bedford Avenue.

Image caption: Cat. 27 Harvie & Sutcliffe (Melbourne, active c. 1890s–1908), Operating theatre, Women’s Hospital, c. 1897, photograph, mounted; 25.4 × 30.4 cm. MHM00406, Medical History Museum, University of Melbourne.