Dame Mabel Miller
Dame Mabel Miller (1906-1978) was a trailblazer among women in Australian political life. Admitted as a barrister in Adelaide in 1927, she became the first female member of the Hobart City Council, on which she served for twenty years. The Mayor of Hobart described her contribution to the Council as "incredible".
She was among the first women state politicians, elected to the seat of Franklin for the House of Assembly in Tasmania in 1955. She also served as the federal vice-president of the Liberal Party in 1961.
Dame Mabel was a life-long advocate for women's issues; she was president of the Council of Women of Tasmania in 1952-54, and in 1967 she represented Australia on the United Nation's Status of Women Commission. She helped to draft declarations on the elimination of discrimination of women.
After being defeated in the State election in 1964, Dame Mabel continued her work in the local community and on a national basis, serving on the interim Council of the Australian National Gallery, and the Metric Conversion Board. She was appointed a Dame of the British Empire in 1967.
Dame Mabel died in 1978, leaving behind a considerable legacy of public advocacy locally, nationally and internationally.
Sources:
Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 15, pp371-72 Melbourne University Press, 2000
The Hobart Mercury, p 13, 7 June 1976
