Margaret Henry (25 July 1934 – 9 September 2015) was an Australian community activist and local government politician.

Early life

Born Helen Margaret on 25 July 1934, she was the youngest of three children, having two older sisters. Her parents were Miriam Dora Groth and William Gardner. She was born and grew up in New Lambton, a suburb of Newcastle, New South Wales, Australia.

Education

Henry went to Newcastle Girls High (now Newcastle High). She was awarded Dux at Newcastle Girls High in 1951 and received Bachelor of Arts (BA) from the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

. In 1955 she received a diploma of education for the University of New England.

University of Newcastle

She was a history lecturer at the University of Newcastle and lectured in

Australian history The history of Australia is the story of the land and peoples of the continent of Australia. People first arrived on the Australian mainland by sea from Maritime Southeast Asia between 50,000 and 65,000 years ago, and penetrated to all parts ...

between 1968 and 1985. Henry spent most of her teaching career with the Open Foundation program for mature aged students at the University of Newcastle. In 1983 she helped establish the Wollotuka Institute. Between 1981 and 1983 Henry was appointed to the Council of the Newcastle College of Advanced Educated by the Education Minister and served as one of two staff representatives on the University of Newcastle Council between 1984 and 1986. In 1990 she taught at the University of Newcastle Department of Community Programs. Henry was a preserver of history, leaving a legacy in history course she developed for the Open Foundation program and local oral histories that were digitised in 2015 by the University of Newcastle Library.

Community advocacy

In 1980 Henry joined the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

of Australia (NSW) and the Hunter Regional Committee of the National Trust and was awarded a National Trust honorary life membership. After the

1989 Newcastle Earthquake The 1989 Newcastle earthquake was an intraplate earthquake that occurred in Newcastle, New South Wales on Thursday 28 December. The shock measured 5.6 on the Richter magnitude scale and was one of Australia's most serious natural disasters, kil ...

she established the Citizen's Earthquake Action Group which was set up to save culturally significant buildings that were damaged in the earthquake including

Royal Newcastle Hospital The Royal Newcastle Hospital was, for nearly 190 years, the main hospital in the Australian city of Newcastle. The hospital stood on a hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean and the Hunter River port of Newcastle, New South Wales, from 1817 until 2007 ...

North Wing and Wheeler House. In 1989 she become the president of Newcastle Hill Residents Group. In the wake of the earthquake she published a book ''The Battle for Newcastle : heritage and the earthquake.'' In 1992 Henry was a founding member of Save Our Rail Inc. In 2003 and 2009 Henry received a NSW Government Heritage Volunteers Award. In 2010 she was made "Hunter Patron of Heritage" by the Hunter Heritage Network and received the Edna Ryan Award from the Australian Services Union. Henry remained strong in her advocacy role during early 2015, when she was a Convenor of a public meeting to discuss the Newcastle & Hunter Planning Enquiry. After her death she was fondly acknowledged by many in the wider community, including tributes from

David Shoebridge David Martin Shoebridge (born 17 September 1971) is an Australian politician and former barrister. He is a member of the Australian Greens and was elected to the Senate as the party's lead candidate in New South Wales at the 2022 federal elec ...

and Leah Rhiannon and others. In 2018 the annual Margaret Henry Memorial Lecture was established, with the first lecture given by

Marcus Westbury Marcus Westbury (born 1974) is an Australian urbanist, festival director, TV presenter, writer and broadcaster. He is based in Melbourne, Australia where he filmed the TV series '' Not Quite Art''. for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation scree ...

. In 2019

Wendy McCarthy Wendy Elizabeth McCarthy (born 22 July 1941 in , New South Wales) is an Australian businesswoman, activist and former university administrator. McCarthy has worked for reform across the public, private and community sectors, in education, fami ...

AO, a prominent businesswoman, feminist activist and educator delivered the lecture.

Political career

In 1968 she joined the Labor Party until 1988. She became a foundation member of the Hunter Green Network which in 1991 became the Newcastle

Greens Greens may refer to: *Leaf vegetables such as collard greens, mustard greens, spring greens, winter greens, spinach, etc. Politics Supranational * Green politics * Green party, political parties adhering to Green politics * Global Greens * Europ ...

. She joined the

party on

Newcastle City Council Newcastle City Council is the local government authority for the city and metropolitan borough of Newcastle upon Tyne. The council consists of 78 councillors, three for each of the 26 wards in the city. It is currently controlled by the Labou ...

in 1995 and served two terms as Deputy Mayor from 1996 to 2000. Leader of the Green NSW David Shoebridge, MLC described Henry as "an indefatigable community activist" and a NSW Upper House tribute resolution moved to note "with thanks and admiration the unflagging work she performed on behalf of the Newcastle community".

Awards

In 2009 Henry received the Honorary Life Member from the

National Trust of Australia The National Trust of Australia, officially the Australian Council of National Trusts (ACNT), is the Australian national peak body for community-based, non-government non-profit organisations committed to promoting and conserving Australia's Ind ...

(NSW). In 2010 she received the Hunter Patron of Heritage by the Hunter Heritage Network Inc. In 2015 she was awarded the Edna Ryan Award for leadership. and in 2016 received posthumously the Freeman of the City of Newcastle on

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port Ja ...

Personal life

In 1958 she married Brian Henry. She lived in the United Kingdom for one year teaching secondary students in Manchester area before returning to Newcastle in 1962. She had three children: David born in 1964, Alison born in 1962 and Catherine born in 1960. In 1984 she divorced her husband Brian. On 9 September 2015 she died of pancreatic cancer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Henry, Margaret University of Newcastle (Australia) faculty People from Newcastle, New South Wales Australian conservationists New South Wales local councillors 1934 births 2015 deaths Women local councillors in Australia