Ruth Fairfax
Encyclopedia
Ruth Beatrice Fairfax OBE (8 October 1878 - 10 June 1950) was a founding member of the Australia
n Country Women's Association
and the first President of the CWA's Queensland
branch. The federal electorate of Fairfax
is named in her honour.
Breillat and Vincent James Dowling on 8 October 1878, in the small town of Lue, near the larger town Rylstone
, New South Wales, Australia.
She was educated at by home by governess
es, and also attended Sydney Church of England Girls' Grammar School. Ruth Dowling and John Hubert Fraser Fairfax were married on 2 February 1899.
near Longreach, Queensland, then in 1908 to a station near Cambooya, Queensland
on the Darling Downs.
In August 1922, in a meeting at the Albert Hall, Brisbane, Fairfax was elected President of the newly established Queensland
branch of Country Women's Association. She then went on a tour of six months around outback Queensland, establishing branches of the CWA and recruiting women to their local CWAs. In 1929, Fairfax travelled to the UK
where she studied at Women's Institutes in England
and Scotland
.
nephritis
in St Luke's Hospital, Potts Point, New South Wales.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Country Women's Association
Country Women's Association
The Country Women’s Association of Australia is the largest women's organisation in Australia. It has 44,000 members across 1855 branches. Its aims are to improve the conditions for country women and children and to try to make life better for women and their families, especially those women...
and the first President of the CWA's Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
branch. The federal electorate of Fairfax
Division of Fairfax
The Division of Fairfax is an Australian Electoral Division in Queensland. The division was created in 1984 and is named for Ruth Fairfax, founder of the Country Women's Association. It is located in the Sunshine Coast region north of Brisbane and includes the towns of Coolum, Maroochydore,...
is named in her honour.
Early life
Fairfax was born Ruth Beatrice Dowling to Frances Emily Dowling néeNEE
NEE is a political protest group whose goal was to provide an alternative for voters who are unhappy with all political parties at hand in Belgium, where voting is compulsory.The NEE party was founded in 2005 in Antwerp...
Breillat and Vincent James Dowling on 8 October 1878, in the small town of Lue, near the larger town Rylstone
Rylstone, New South Wales
Rylstone is a small town in New South Wales, Australia, in the Central Tablelands region within the Mid-Western Regional Council local government area. It is located on the Bylong Valley Way road route...
, New South Wales, Australia.
She was educated at by home by governess
Governess
A governess is a girl or woman employed to teach and train children in a private household. In contrast to a nanny or a babysitter, she concentrates on teaching children, not on meeting their physical needs...
es, and also attended Sydney Church of England Girls' Grammar School. Ruth Dowling and John Hubert Fraser Fairfax were married on 2 February 1899.
CWA career
The Fairfaxs moved to a "station"Station (Australian agriculture)
Station is the term for a large Australian landholding used for livestock production. It corresponds to the North American term ranch or South American estancia...
near Longreach, Queensland, then in 1908 to a station near Cambooya, Queensland
Cambooya, Queensland
Cambooya is a town in the Darling Downs region of Queensland, Australia, 148 kilometres west of the state capital, Brisbane.A suburban rail motor service from Toowoomba commenced in May, 1917, running to Wyreema, 10 miles away. It was extended to Cambooya and to Willowburn in 1918...
on the Darling Downs.
In August 1922, in a meeting at the Albert Hall, Brisbane, Fairfax was elected President of the newly established Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
branch of Country Women's Association. She then went on a tour of six months around outback Queensland, establishing branches of the CWA and recruiting women to their local CWAs. In 1929, Fairfax travelled to the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
where she studied at Women's Institutes in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
.
Later life
In her later years, she was afflicted with diabetes. Fairfax died on 1 February 1948 from chronicChronic (medicine)
A chronic disease is a disease or other human health condition that is persistent or long-lasting in nature. The term chronic is usually applied when the course of the disease lasts for more than three months. Common chronic diseases include asthma, cancer, diabetes and HIV/AIDS.In medicine, the...
nephritis
Nephritis
Nephritis is inflammation of the nephrons in the kidneys. The word "nephritis" was imported from Latin, which took it from Greek: νεφρίτιδα. The word comes from the Greek νεφρός - nephro- meaning "of the kidney" and -itis meaning "inflammation"....
in St Luke's Hospital, Potts Point, New South Wales.