Well-behaved Women Rarely Make History
About this Event
Well-Behaved Women Rarely Make History
And colonial Sydney had rather a lot to say about that!
One might be forgiven for thinking that Sydney was built entirely by intrepid blokes, commemorated in bronze at every turn - right down to Trim, Matthew Flinders' very male cat. One might think the city emerged without a single woman in sight.
The reality couldn't have been more different. Women in colonial Sydney built businesses, ran households and shaped communities while the history books were busy writing about someone else, and while the law was doing its level best to keep them ornamental and indoors.
Biographer Michelle Scott Tucker and historian Dr Rachel Franks will give an unfiltered account of the remarkable women who refused to comply - the artists, activists, educators, and entrepreneurs - and the spaces that held them, including the SMSA and Quong Tart's Tea Rooms.
You can expect high wit and heavy truths in a pacy & pointed conversation about the women who stopped waiting for permission and simply got on with changing their world. And ours.
About Michelle
Biographer extraordinaire and dedicated resurrector of magnificent historical women, Michelle dragged Elizabeth Macarthur out from her husband’s colossal shadow and onto the bestseller list. Showing a spectacular range of she also teamed up with multi-hyphenate creator Aaron Fa'Aoso to pen his groundbreaking memoir So Far, So Good, alongside their captivating novel Spirit of the Crocodile.
When she isn't steering literary boards or slaying the corporate dragon, you'll find Michelle at the bottom of various research rabbit holes for her new biography on Louisa Lawson (due for publication in 2027).
About Rachel
An award-winning author of An Uncommon Hangman (2022), researcher and educator parked at the State Library of New South Wales. Rachel is a brilliantly relentless archival sleuth with a distinct penchant for true crime, historic scandals and general misbehaviour. She specialises in reclaiming forgotten stories from the immaculately maintained vaults, ensuring Sydney’s original rule-breakers finally get their due.
🎟️ Free for SMSA Members
🎟️ Free for U3A & Older Women's Network Members
🎟️$10 for friends and non-members
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Where is it happening?
Event Location & Nearby Stays:
AUD 0.00 to AUD 11.90
