Today, when women have achieved parity in many fields, a woman achieving prominence is not particularly rare. But as late as the mid-last century, such rarities still abounded, not least in politics. From its inception in 1888, local government in Redcliffe (and almost everywhere else in Australia) was an exclusively male enterprise until 1952 when Keitha Drake became the first woman elected to the Redcliffe Town Council.
Her election, though, did not shield Mrs Drake from the entrenched attitudes, mores and conventions of the time. How demeaning and disheartening it must have been for her to hear, in 1959, long after her election, Mayor Houghton opine that what Redcliffe needed “to build things worthwhile” was “a generally higher calibre of men interesting themselves in civic affairs”. The furtherance of such worthwhile projects would require, he continued, “these men … to plan for posterity” – presumably a posterity without women.
Keitha Drake: A Life of Service and Dedication
Keitha Mary Scurr was born in 1907 and attended Brisbane State High School. As a young woman, she was a star hockey player, good enough to be in contention, in 1939, for a place in the Brisbane A-Grade team. In 1940, she married George Drake and in 1947 gave birth to their son, Henry. She was active in many organisations, the variety of which reflected the breadth of her interests: the Red Cross, the CWA, the Peninsula Horticultural Society, as well as educational, sporting, arts and youth welfare associations.
After a stint as secretary of the Victoria Point Progress Association, she turned her attention to representative politics, successfully contesting the 1952 council election and every subsequent election for the next 13 years. At the 1964 election, she received over 6000 votes, more than any other candidate.
One of her main concerns was the delivery of better health services for Redcliffe, particularly a public hospital, and it was this issue that first spurred her to stand for office. Despite her best efforts, including as Redcliffe’s representative on the Brisbane hospitals’ board – the first woman to serve in that capacity – this did not become a reality until 1965. She also fought for smaller causes, agitating for the provision of laundry facilities for Redcliffe campgrounds – probably a trivial matter in the eyes of her fellow councillors but of considerable importance to the legions of holidaying women washing in kerosene tubs over open fires.
Keitha Drake, pioneer, legend of local government and friend to all, died in 1966, aged 58, still the only woman serving on the council, her health ruined by her long and dedicated service to Redcliffe.
With thanks to MBRC ,Image courtesy of Moreton Bay Regional Council, reference number RLPC-001\001344.
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- Redcliffe Botanic Gardens: An Oasis in the Heart of Redcliffe
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- Celebrating 100 Years of Scarborough State School
- Redcliffe’s Disappearing History
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- Spit Movie Review and Interview
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- Council Launches Program to Strengthen Hospitality Sector
- Local Faces: Diahann Maude
- Craft for All at Craftival
- Humpybong Creek Clean Up
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- A Golden Ticket to Musical Magic
- Shining a Light on Local Women
- What’s Hot Around Town
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- Podcast Review
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