Alison, Lady Kerr (; 29 July 1915 – 9 September 1974) was the first wife of

Sir John Kerr Sir John Robert Kerr, (24 September 1914 – 24 March 1991) was an Australian barrister and judge who served as the 18th governor-general of Australia, in office from 1974 to 1977. He is primarily known for his involvement in the 1975 Austral ...

, who was Governor-General of Australia from 1974 to 1977. She was a marriage guidance counselor and administrator prior to his appointment. She died soon into Kerr's term at Yarralumla, and he remarried a few months later.

Biography

Alison Worstead was born in 1915 in

Molong Molong is a small town in the Central West (New South Wales), Central West region of New South Wales, Australia, in Cabonne Shire Council, Cabonne Shire. History The name Molong comes from the indigenous Australians, Aboriginal word for 'all ro ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

. She was known as "Peggy" to her family and friends. She had a brother named Victor, who predeceased her, as did her parents, Frederick Oscar (formerly Wehrstedt) and Florence Ophelia (née Jones).''Sydney Morning Herald'', 10 September 1974
"Lady Kerr's work in marriage guidance", p. 8
Retrieved 21 April 2014 She was educated at Domremy Convent,

Five Dock Five Dock is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Five Dock is located 10 kilometres west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Canada Bay. Location Fi ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

and gained a Diploma of Social Studies at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

.Legislative Council of New South Wales, 17 September 1974
Death of Her Excellency Lady Kerr, Wife of the Governor-General
; retrieved 20 April 2014 A fellow student there was Margaret Dovey, who became a close lifelong friend and later married

Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from December 1972 to November 1975. To date the longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), he was notable for being ...

. Peggy Worstead married John Kerr on 4 November 1938, in St James' Church, King St, Sydney, the same year in which he was admitted to the New South Wales Bar. In 1939 the first of their three children, Gabrielle, was born. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

she worked with the Family Welfare Bureau and the Australian Imperial Forces Women's Association, and later Secretary of the Hospital Almoners' Institute. In 1945 her daughter Kristin was born, and in 1949 her son Philip. In 1954 she was invited to become a

marriage guidance counsellor The Marriage Guidance Counsellor sketch is from the second ''Monty Python's Flying Circus'' episode, "Sex and Violence", first broadcast late on Sunday, 12 October 1969. Written by Eric Idle, it was also featured in the 1971 spinoff film '' An ...

, by the Rev W. G. Coughlan, the founder and first director of the Marriage Guidance Council of New South Wales. She did this work for ten years, later becoming a member of the Council's Executive Committee (1964–65; her husband was President of the Marriage Guidance Council 1962-63). In 1965 she suffered a

stroke Stroke is a medical condition in which poor cerebral circulation, blood flow to a part of the brain causes cell death. There are two main types of stroke: brain ischemia, ischemic, due to lack of blood flow, and intracranial hemorrhage, hemor ...

occasioned by a subarachnoid haemmorhage, which paralysed her left side and left her with a speech disability. However, she rose above these challenges to continue her work as a marriage guidance counsellor and to serve on Lifeline's Adoption Committee. When her husband became Chief Justice and Lieutenant-Governor of New South Wales, she often assumed the role of spouse of the acting Governor. John Kerr was knighted in the New Year's Honours of 1974, and his wife became Lady Kerr. Shortly before his appointment as Governor-General of Australia was announced on 27 February 1974, she had had a serious fall which sprained an ankle and fractured a wrist. Shortly after the announcement she was diagnosed with a serious illness (the exact nature of which was not publicly revealed), but she was well enough to travel to London for Sir John and her to be received by the Queen. Upon her husband's swearing-in as Governor-General on 11 July 1974, they took up residence in

Government House, Canberra Government House, colloquially known as Yarralumla, is the official residence of the governor-general of Australia. It is located in the suburb of Yarralumla in the Australian capital city of Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory. The ...

. But her illness caused her to be admitted to hospital in Sydney on 22 July and again on 29 August.Sydney Morning Herald, 10 September 1974
"Lady Kerr dies after brief illness", pg. 1
retrieved 21 April 2014 Between treatments she returned to Admiralty House, and Sir John Kerr transferred some engagements there so that he could be close to her. On 9 September 1974 she died in the

Royal Prince Alfred Hospital The Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (abbreviated RPAH or RPA) is a large teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Missenden Road in Camperdown. It is a teaching hospital of the Central Clinical School of the Sydney Medical School at the ...

in Sydney. She was cremated at the

Northern Suburbs Crematorium The Northern Suburbs Crematorium, officially Northern Suburbs Memorial Gardens and Crematorium, is a crematorium in North Ryde, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, Australia. It was officially opened on 28 October 1933, and the first cremation t ...

later the same day, following a private service at St James Church. A public memorial service was held on 12 September at St James Church. There were formal tributes to Lady Kerr in the

Australian Parliament The Parliament of Australia (officially the Parliament of the Commonwealth and also known as the Federal Parliament) is the federal legislature of Australia. It consists of three elements: the Monarchy of Australia, monarch of Australia (repr ...

and the

New South Wales Parliament The Parliament of New South Wales, formally the Legislature of New South Wales, (definition of "The Legislature") is the bicameral legislative body of the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW). It consists of the Monarch, the New South Wale ...

. She was survived by her husband and three children: Gabrielle Kibble, a town planner and later NSW State Director of Planning; Kristin Johnson, a psychiatrist; and Philip Kerr, a solicitor. Sir John Kerr remarried in April 1975, to Anne Robson. In her short time as a governor-general's spouse, Lady Alison Kerr had dispensed with the requirement for women to

curtsey A curtsy (also spelled curtsey or incorrectly as courtsey) is a traditional gendered gesture of greeting, in which a girl or woman bends her knees while bowing her head. In Western culture it is the feminine equivalent of bowing by males, altho ...

to her and her husband. Lady Anne Kerr reinstated the practice.Gough Whitlam, ''The Truth of the Matter'', p. 229
Retrieved 20 April 2014

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerr, Alison 1915 births 1974 deaths Spouses of Australian governors-general Relationship counseling University of Sydney alumni

Biography

See also

References