There are many ‘Firsts’ that have occurred in the Goldfields and one of them is that we had the first female police officer, Helen Blanche Dugdale who was appointed from Kalgoorlie. The Police Historical Society have recognised the contribution of Helen Dugdale and in 2006 the Goldfields Family History Society had a plaque placed on her grave in the Kalgoorlie Cemetery.
First Female Police Officers in WA
Women played important, but largely forgotten roles in WA law enforcement history in the colonial era. When they married police officers, from necessity they often became the working partners of their constable husbands. This was a particularly vital matter in the regions, where they performed such tasks as receiving and sending messages, cooking meals for prisoners, and searching female prisoners. On top of that, there was an expectation at the country town and suburban level that they should set a good example as wives and mothers and be active as community leaders.
One fairly common pattern was for the local constable to marry a nurse, or a school teacher, or a postmistress. Certain standards were expected – and interesting letters have survived from young police officers asking permission to marry, sometimes supplying testimonials regarding the character and probity of their future life partner and perhaps even her family background. How irksome it must have been to need such permission, a rule that remained in place for decades.
Kalgoorlie Cemetery
The First World War changed everything, starting with a lot of very basic attitudes. The conflict caused severe dislocation on the home front and wrecked some of the more stable patterns of family life. Organisations such as the powerful ‘Women’s Service Guild’ brought pressure to bear to protect vulnerable females and young people. Hardly a surprise to hear of such matters – the lack of father figures was a problem in many thousands of households, frequently for the very worst of reasons. Death in action or war-related health problems topped the list. Charitable institutions worked hard to repair the damage and deal reasonably with public alarm about worsening alcohol abuse, the impact of poverty, and the perceived collapse of ‘moral standards’. We are not in a position to smile about such attitudes – sexually transmitted diseases had a horrific impact on individuals. Antibiotics were not around and early infection could mean a lifetime of misery.
Some research and solid lobbying led to the appointment in 1917 of two female constables. They are shown here in a rather well-known image of that year. Constable Helen Dugdale was Scottish by birth and had been employed as a nurse and social worker in turn before joining the police. Laura Chipper’s career background was similar, with an added factor of family tradition – she was a member of an old colonial family and no less than seven men of her name served in the WA Police during the 1800s and 1900s. The women were appointed with the object of safekeeping the moral welfare of women and children, particularly girls between the ages of fifteen and twenty-one years. They worked in plain clothes and were instructed to patrol parks, places of entertainment, and other areas where women and children were to be found.
A breakthrough for women of that era was that they received the same wages as their male counterparts. Their duties widened over the years, but they remained as a single unit, and if they were to marry were discharged from the Force. It wasn’t until 1975-76 that saw the requirement to be unmarried was lifted, and integration in all areas then took place. Women went into uniform and were trained in conjunction with male applicants. Three women were appointed as Detectives in this same period. Women Police officers in Western Australia have subsequently held positions at all the rank levels up to Assistant Commissioner.
Helen Blanch Dugdale – plaque on grave
Information from the Police Historical Society of Western Australia
Moya Sharp
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