OSBORNE, ETHEL ELIZABETH (1882-1968), medical practitioner and industrial
hygienist, was born on 30 January 1882 at Armley, Leeds, Yorkshire, England,
second child of James Goodson, butcher and later businessman, and his wife
Elizabeth, née Lockley. Educated at Yorkshire College and the University of Leeds
(M.Sc., 1907), she retained a broad Yorkshire accent throughout her life. On 10
December 1903 at Armley Church of England she married William Alexander Osborne
and soon after sailed with him to Melbourne, where he had been appointed professor
of physiology and histology at the university. The Osborne family, which included
eventually three daughters and a son, lived at the university, spending their
holidays at Lowestoft, a rambling timber house at Warrandyte.
View the full record at
Australian Dictionary of Biography Online
Ethel Osborne and her husband William, who had been appointed professor of physiology and histology at the University of Melbourne, migrated to Australia in 1904. Osborne, a foundation member of The Catalysts, visited the Lyceum Club while travelling through London. At the inaugural meeting of the Lyceum Club in Melbourne she was elected vice-president. Back in England during World War I Osborne worked with the British Ministry of Munitions of War. Here she conducted investigations for the Health of Munition Workers’ Committee and the Industrial Fatigue Research Board. Upon her return to Melbourne she was invited to report to the Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration on the conditions of employment of women workers in the clothing industry, for a case which won some workers a 44 hour week. Osborne then studied medicine at the University of Melbourne, practising at the Queen Victoria Hospital for Women and Children, the (Royal) Melbourne Hospital and privately. Osborne became a foundation member of the Emily McPherson College of Domestic Economy council, serving as treasurer, vice-president and president. When the college’s new premises were opened in 1927, its hall was named after her. Before retiring, in 1938, Osborne represented Australia at the Pan-Pacific Women’s Conference (Honolulu 1928 and 1930), attended the Congress on Industrial Accidents and Diseases (Geneva) the International Congress of Industrial Relations (Amsterdam), the Disarmament Conference (Paris) and investigated employment problems in Yorkshire.
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1901
Obtained BSc. from Leeds University
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10 December 1903
Married William Osborne at Armley Church of England and they were to have four children
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1904
Settled in Australia
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1910
Visited the Lyceum Club, London and reported back to the Catalysts group
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1910
Foundation member of The Catalysts
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21 March 1912
Attended inaugural meeting and elected vice-president of the Lyceum Club, Melbourne
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July 1912 - 1937
Foundation member of the Emily McPherson College of Domestic Economy Council
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1915 - 1917
President of the Emily McPherson College of Domestic Economy Council
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1919
Invited to report to the Australian Commonwealth Court of Conciliation and Arbitration on the conditions of employment of women workers in the clothing industry
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1919 - 1929
President of the Emily McPherson College of Domestic Economy Council
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1921
Visited the United States of America and investigated industrial hygiene and medicine, women's unionism and home economics
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1923
Graduated MB BS from the University of Melbourne
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1924
Published her report on the health of female workers in the printing and allied trades, commissioned by the union
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1925
Commonwealth delegate to the international congress on industrial accidents and diseases, Amsterdam
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27 April 1927
When the Emily McPherson College of Domestic Economy new premises were opened, its hall was named after her
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1928
Represented Australia at the Pan-Pacific Women's Conference in Honolulu
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1928
Commonwealth delegate to the international congress on industrial accidents and diseases, Budapest
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1928 - 1929
While overseas she investigated dietary departments and schools for St Vincent's Hospital
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1930
Programme secretary and liaison officer for the League of Nations and the International Labour Office at the second Pan-Pacific Women's Conference, Honolulu
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1931
Attended the Congress on Industrial Accidents and Diseases (Geneva), the International Congress on Industrial Relations (Amsterdam), the Disarmament Conference (Paris), and investigated employment problems in Yorkshire
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1931
Graduated with a Diploma of Public Health from the University of Melbourne
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September 1931
Appointed substitute delegate to the League of Nations assembly
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1932
Medicial locum in England and substitute delegate to the League of Nations assembly
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1937
Attended four public health congresses in England and an international congress on cancer research in Brussels
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1938
Retired with her husband to their property at Kangaroo Ground
View the full record at
Australian Women's Register
Ethel Osborne was my grandmother. The last time I saw her was in St Vincent;s hospital where she had 'lived' for some years. She was propped up in bed in a white nightie with a thin fountain of gray hair tied with a pink ribbon on the top of her head. She was great fun and loved animals. At 'The Hall' - Kangaroo Ground - she kept pigs & relished getting into the sty and feeding them. Granny enjoyed us coming to visit at KG. The house was amazing- full of treasures and it had 'heart'. She was a character - no pretensions. Lisa