Ethel Gertrude Hart (1873 – 28 January 1965) was an Australian children's novelist, short story writer and poet. With

Bernard Cronin Bernard Cronin (18 March 1884 – 9 June 1968) was an Australian author and journalist. With Gertrude Hart, he founded the Old Derelicts' Club in 1920 which later became the Society of Australian Authors. Life Cronin was born in Ealing, Midd ...

, she founded the Old Derelicts' Club in 1920 which later became the Society of Australian Authors.

Biography

Ethel Gertrude Hart was born in 1873 in the

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

suburb of Williamstown, and grew up in Stawell in western

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. She was educated at Hohenloe College, a private girls' school in

Warrnambool Warrnambool ( Maar: ''Peetoop'' or ''Wheringkernitch'' or ''Warrnambool'') is a city on the south-western coast of Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 census, Warrnambool had a population of 35,743. Situated on the Princes Highway, Warrnambool (Al ...

. Her first book, ''Wanted – A Servant: An Australian Story'', was published in England in 1890. Her poetry appeared in the Melbourne press from 1911 through to the 1950s when she wrote "Australia Speaks Its Love", celebrating the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II and the royal visit to Australia in 1954. On the day she received the first copy of her 1912 romance novel, ''The Dream Girl'', she walked for the first time in seven years, following successful surgery. Doubleday Doran & Co. bought the rights to publish it in the United States. A reviewer of ''The Laughter Lady'' suggested that it may be better enjoyed by 50-year-olds than children and that it had "wide appeal". ''Chubby'' was published by ''

The Australasian The ''Australasian Post'', commonly called the ''Aussie Post'', was Australia's longest-running weekly picture magazine. History and profile Its origins are traceable to Saturday, 3 January 1857, when the first issue of ''Bell's Life in Victoria ...

'' in serial form in 1928. In 1920 she and Bernard Cronin founded the Old Derelicts' Club, a group for "struggling" writers and artists. In 1927 it became the Society of Australian Authors, with Cronin as president and

Louis Lavater ] Louis Isidore Lavater (2 March 1867 – 22 May 1953) was an Australian composer and author born in Victoria (Australia), Victoria, of Swedish extraction. He published more than a hundred musical works. He prepared musical settings of popular f ...

and Hart vice-presidents. Its aim was to raise the profile of Australian authors across Australia and also to welcome visiting writers. Cronin thought that the society became too political and it ceased to operate in 1936. Hart was one of the first 14 women to join the Victorian branch of the PEN Club (now

PEN International PEN International (known as International PEN until 2010) is a worldwide association of writers, founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere. The association has autonomous Internationa ...

) in the 1930s, a condition of membership being publication of one or more books. Hart spent her final years at

Ferny Creek Ferny Creek is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 33 km south-east of Melbourne's central business district, located within the Shire of Yarra Ranges local government area. Ferny Creek recorded a population of 1,524 at the 2021 ...

and died at

Olinda Olinda () is a historic city in Pernambuco, Brazil, in the Northeast Region, Brazil, Northeast Region. It is located on the country's northeastern Atlantic Ocean coast, in the Recife metropolitan area, Metropolitan Region of Recife, the state capi ...

on 28 January 1965.

Selected works

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, Gertrude 1873 births 1965 deaths 19th-century Australian women writers 20th-century Australian women writers Australian women children's writers Writers from Victoria (state) People from Stawell, Victoria