Mary Agnes Coutts Michie, (February 1857 – 29 November 1945) was founder and administrator of the World War I Michie Hospital, and an art collector and benefactor.

Early life

Smith was born in

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located north-west of London, south-east ...

in February 1857, and emigrated to Australia at the age of 12, on The Southern Belle landing in

Brisbane, Queensland Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

. She married James Magyer at

Burra, South Australia Burra is a pastoral centre and historic tourist town in the mid-north of South Australia. It lies east of the Clare Valley in the Bald Hills range, part of the northern Mount Lofty Ranges, and on Burra Creek. The town began as a single company ...

and as Mary Agnes Mayger, she and her husband were employed at Mount Gipps Station, near

Broken Hill Broken Hill is an inland mining city in the far west of outback New South Wales, Australia. It is near the border with South Australia on the crossing of the Barrier Highway (A32) and the Silver City Highway (B79), in the Barrier Range. It is ...

. Mount Gipps was managed by

George McCulloch George McCulloch (February 22, 1792 – April 6, 1861) was an American politician who served as a Democratic member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania. George McCulloch was born in Maysville, Kentucky. Upon the death of his ...

, a founder of the

Syndicate of Seven The Syndicate of Seven is the name given to the original members of the Broken Hill Mining Company formed in 1883, who lodged applications for mining leases along the Line of Lode at Broken Hill, New South Wales, Broken Hill in New South Wales, Aus ...

in 1883, and Director of the Broken Hill Mining Company formed in 1855. Her first husband died at Sydney in 1892 and in 1893 she married George McCulloch in London.

Art collection

During her marriage to George McCulloch the couple developed a significant collection of artworks. In 1894 they built a house at No. 184 Queen's Gate, London which housed these works. Following McCulloch's death in 1907, Mary married third the Scottish artist James Coutts Michie in 1909 who had been an art adviser to the couple. An exhibition of the McCulloch Collection of Modern Art was shown at

Burlington House Burlington House is a building on Piccadilly in Mayfair, London. It was originally a private Neo-Palladian mansion owned by the Earls of Burlington and was expanded in the mid-19th century after being purchased by the British government. Toda ...

in 1909, as the

Royal Academy The Royal Academy of Arts (RA) is an art institution based in Burlington House on Piccadilly in London. Founded in 1768, it has a unique position as an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects. Its pur ...

Winter Exhibition. In 1919 her third husband died and a portion of the McCulloch collection was sold. In 1928 she gifted paintings to the Broken Hill Art Gallery and to the

Art Gallery of South Australia The Art Gallery of South Australia (AGSA), established as the National Gallery of South Australia in 1881, is located in Adelaide. It is the most significant visual arts museum in the Australian state of South Australia. It has a collection of ...

, including a portrait of George McCulloch painted by James Coutts Michie.

Wartime service

During World War I Coutts Michie provided her home as a British

Red Cross The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a Humanitarianism, humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million Volunteering, volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure re ...

Voluntary Aid Detachment The Voluntary Aid Detachment (VAD) was a voluntary unit of civilians providing nursing care for military personnel in the United Kingdom and various other countries in the British Empire. The most important periods of operation for these units we ...

Hospital which was known as the Michie Hospital, or the Queen's Gate Hospital. In retirement Coutts Michie lived in a house known as 'Broken Hill,' in

Cobham, Surrey Cobham () is a large village in the Borough of Elmbridge in Surrey, England, centred south-west of London and northeast of Guildford on the River Mole. It has a commercial/services High Street, a significant number of primary and private s ...

. She died on 29 November 1945 at the age of 88 years.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Coutts Michie, Mary 1857 births 1945 deaths People from Broken Hill, New South Wales British art collectors British hospital administrators British women in World War I Women in Australia Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire English emigrants to colonial Australia Officers of the Order of the British Empire People from Nottingham