Life's Objects - Mary Newman (nee Mason)

This collection of life’s objects once belonged to Mary Newman (nee Mason), who lived at 67 Hamersley Road, with her family, from 1929 until 1963.

Mary was born on March 1, 1855, in South Australia. She married Edward Newman in 1881 in Canning, WA.  They would go on to have three sons and four daughters.

Her youngest son Jack died in 1917 while fighting at the Western Front. He sent numerous letters from the front to his mother and sisters. These letters were donated to the museum in the 1980s.

This collection represents objects commonly used by women that would typically be found on a woman’s vanity. In viewing these objects, we can begin to imagine the smaller details that contribute to the larger picture of daily life for Mary Newman.

It is unknown if they belonged to Mary or her daughters.