Elsie Curtin
CBE
Curtin in 1937
Spouse of the Prime Minister of Australia
In office
7 October 1941 – 5 July 1945
Prime MinisterJohn Curtin
Preceded byIlma Fadden
Succeeded byVeronica Forde
Personal details
Born
Elsie Needham

(1890-10-04)4 October 1890
Ballarat, Victoria
Died24 June 1975(1975-06-24) (aged 84)
Cottesloe, Western Australia
Resting placeKarrakatta Cemetery
Spouse
​
​
(m. 1917; died 1945)​
Children
  • Elsie
  • John
OccupationCommunity worker

Elsie Curtin CBE (née Needham; 4 October 1890 – 24 June 1975) was the wife of John Curtin, the 14th Prime Minister of Australia.[1]

Biography

Curtin was born in Ballarat, Victoria to parents Annie and Abraham Needham. From 1898 to 1910, she lived in Cape Town, Cape Colony (now Western Cape, South Africa). During the 1910s, she moved to Hobart, Tasmania, where she met John Curtin. They married in Perth, Western Australia, on 21 April 1917 and had two children.[2]

During her husband's wartime premiership, she supported him at two homes. She arranged functions and launched ships. Her husband died in office on 5 July 1945 and she attended the public funeral.

In 1944, she became the Labour Women's Union's Western Australian President, a role she kept until September 1946.[2]

Curtin died on 24 June 1975 in Cottesloe.[2][3]

References

  1. ^ "Elsie Curtin". Australia's Prime Ministers. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  2. ^ a b c "Curtin, Elsie (1890–1975)". The Australian Women's Register. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
  3. ^ "Biography of Elsie Curtin". John Curtin Prime Ministerial Library. Retrieved 12 November 2016.
Honorary titles Preceded byIlma Fadden Spouse of the Prime Minister of Australia 7 October 1941 – 5 July 1945 Succeeded byVeronica Forde
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