Discovering Bessie Rischbieth

Bessie Mabel Rischbieth (1874–1967) was many things: a feminist leader, an ardent internationalist, a lifelong theosophist and a global traveller, as well as a wife, aunt and sister. Her name might not be so well known now, but at her peak from the 1910s to the 1940s, she was one of the most significant feminists in the country.

This presentation will share some of the key features and events of her long life and will showcase various archival materials that offer insights into the fascinating and sometimes enigmatic character she was.

About the speaker:

Dr Michelle Staff is a feminist historian based at the Australian National University in Canberra/Kamberri. She is the online and outreach manager for the National Centre of Biography and in 2025 received the Hazel Rowley Literary Fellowship in support of her current project, a biography of the Western Australian feminist Bessie Rischbieth. She is also an avid amateur soccer player and dog mum to Billie the cavoodle.