Biography of Catherine Mary Oliver: second Matron of the Melbourne Lying-in Hospital and Infirmary for Diseases Peculiar to Women and Children

Abstract

Catherine Oliver was Matron at the Melbourne Lying-in Hospital and Infirmary for Diseases Peculiar to Women and Children (MLIH) from 1859 until early 1861. What we know about Mrs Oliver and about other women at the MLIH during this early era is limited, because many of the hospital records from this period have not survived. While the work that women did as Matron or Head Nurse or Cook was integral to the smooth functioning of the institution, what that work consisted of is almost invisible in the documentary record. These women had very little written about them and their daily activities, unless the individual was the subject of a complaint or, less often, worthy of high praise. The women,..