Oral History - Alison Harris and Nancy Passmore, 2018

In 1969, Melville swore in its first female councillor, Mrs Alison Harris, for the ward of Mt Pleasant. Mrs Harris was interested in community. Her children went to scouts she and her husband Geoff became members of Mount Pleasant Ratepayers Association, which led to working with Melville City Council. “Ron Carroll was the Mayor at the time. He said to the Congregational minister at the time, who was the Reverend Dorothy Wacker, "If a woman sits at my council table I'll resign," and she just laughed at him. She was very avant garde. So the scout people, the church people supported me and I went around and door knocked and we had lots of fun on polling day. My kids had to hand out brochures and all this sort of thing. I was only there four years. It was an extended term because they were waiting for the state government to change the boundaries because the university wasn't built then.” Mrs Harris served until 1973, and is still remembered to this day for her presence on Council. Mrs Harris was instrumental in saving Heathcote, Wireless Hill, the Alfred Cove foreshore, and Blue Gum Swamp.