Georgiana Molloy by Bernice Barry

Can you imagine arriving in the early 1800s to the remote Western Australian coast, leaving friends and family behind and starting a new life in a foreign landscape with only your husband for company? It would break so many of us, but not Georgiana Molloy, nee Kennedy. She decided almost immediately upon arrival to make something of her new life, and thus she became the first internationally successful female botanist in WA.

Georgiana Molloy’s story as a contributor to the discovery of the unique flora of the state’s south west is well known, however, until now, details of her life before leaving Scotland and arriving in Australia were not known, nor considered important. Bernice Barry’s biography brings Molloy’s life prior and throughout the gruelling 12 years on the WA coast alive (she died in childbirth at the age of 37), it tells the story of her marriage and also records the extraordinary hardship women of this time faced. This book includes a thoughtful collection of Molloy’s papers, diaries, images and documents that provide evidence of her loneliness and her fortitude, as well as her capacity to savour a harsh environment and leave a legacy that is still distinguished today.

This biography is a must for fans of Australian history, of determined women and of anyone who has ever savoured the beauty of our natural flora. This is not a politically angled study; don’t read it for the wrongs of our past, but rather as a celebration of a woman able to make her mark.


Chris Gordon