Fanny Furner
Encyclopedia
Fanny Furner was an activist who worked to further the rights of women and children in the early 1900s in Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...

.

Accomplishments

Fanny Furner was one of the first female JPs in New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

 and along with fellow member of the Theosophical Society, Mrs AV Roberts, the first women to stand for election
Election
An election is a formal decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual to hold public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative democracy operates since the 17th century. Elections may fill offices in the legislature, sometimes in the...

 in local government
Local government
Local government refers collectively to administrative authorities over areas that are smaller than a state.The term is used to contrast with offices at nation-state level, which are referred to as the central government, national government, or federal government...

 - Mrs Roberts in North Shore, Fanny in Manly
Manly, New South Wales
Manly is a suburb of northern Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Manly is located 17 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre of the local government area of Manly Council, in the Northern Beaches region.-History:Manly was named...

.

Furner was instrumental in setting up a Memorial at the gates at the Wharves
Wharf
A wharf or quay is a structure on the shore of a harbor where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers.Such a structure includes one or more berths , and may also include piers, warehouses, or other facilities necessary for handling the ships.A wharf commonly comprises a fixed...

 in Woolloomooloo to commemorate the place from where most of the men embarked for the First World War. She was also instrumental in getting the Children's Playground near the wharf at Manly built (opposite the police station). Furner was responsible for the Home Mission Society
Home mission society
The American Baptist Home Mission Societies is a Christian missionary society. It was established in New York City in 1832 to operate in the American frontier, with the stated mission "to preach the Gospel, establish churches and give support and ministry to the unchurched and destitute." In the...

 bins being placed at the Manly Wharves.

Media Attention

Furner had many article
Article (publishing)
An article is a written work published in a print or electronic medium. It may be for the purpose of propagating the news, research results, academic analysis or debate.-News articles:...

s in The Manly Daily on civic and social matters and was friendly with the editor and owner. However the paper was burnt out in 1959 and there are no copies at the State Library held before that date.

Legacy

References to Fanny Furner and her accomplishments continue to surface. On 19 September 1987, an article appeared in the Manly Daily
Manly Daily
The Manly Daily is an Australian local newspaper, covering the local government areas of Manly, Pittwater and Warringah.The paper is one of News Limited's community newspapers in New South Wales...

newspaper, stating:

Fanny Set Precedent. Next week eight women will seek election, following a precedent
Precedent
In common law legal systems, a precedent or authority is a principle or rule established in a legal case that a court or other judicial body may apply when deciding subsequent cases with similar issues or facts...

 set 65 years ago when Fanny Furner announced her candidature as the first woman to stand for Manly Council
Manly Council
Manly Council is a Local Government Area on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia.- Demographics :According to the , there:...

. She was unsuccessful but pleaded the cause of a female voice to be heard on the council. Fanny believed women should have a say in municipal affairs relating to public health
Health
Health is the level of functional or metabolic efficiency of a living being. In humans, it is the general condition of a person's mind, body and spirit, usually meaning to be free from illness, injury or pain...

, housing, pure foods, road
Road
A road is a thoroughfare, route, or way on land between two places, which typically has been paved or otherwise improved to allow travel by some conveyance, including a horse, cart, or motor vehicle. Roads consist of one, or sometimes two, roadways each with one or more lanes and also any...

s, sanitation
Sanitation
Sanitation is the hygienic means of promoting health through prevention of human contact with the hazards of wastes. Hazards can be either physical, microbiological, biological or chemical agents of disease. Wastes that can cause health problems are human and animal feces, solid wastes, domestic...

 and liquor laws, amusements and children's interests."

This article, published long after Furner's death demonstrates the longevity of her suffrage
Suffrage
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...

work.
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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