OF Intemperance, Class and Gender in Colonial Queensland: A Working-Class Woman’s Account of Alcohol Abuse

Abstract

Writings by working-class women are relatively rare in the historical record, especially for mid-nineteenth century Australia. The letters of Julia Cross to her mother in Ely, Cambridgeshire, are notable not just for the mundane matters they discuss, but for the unique insight they give to a woman trapped by her class and gender because of her husband’s intemperate habits. In a hard-headed decision, Julia resolved to stay with her husband and live out the consequences. The letters graphically describe her struggle to provide the necessities of life for her family and the stresses of physically protecting her children when her husband was drunk. Julia is revealed as a hard-working and resourceful woman who was committed to giving her children the best she could. The letters give us access to one working-class woman’s perspective on men’s drinking, one that was certainly not the narrow vision of the domestic sphere associated with the middle class. Julia found spaces outside the domestic sphere in which to work for her family’s benefit.This article has been peer-reviewed