Author: Jennifer Gall

Publisher: National Library of Australia

Published: 2017-03-01

Total Pages: 211

ISBN-13: 064227892X

Rose Isabella Paterson gave birth to a boy, Barty, in 1864. That child became the famous balladeer, Andrew Barton 'Banjo' Paterson. Barty was the first of seven children who lived on Illalong station, a property near the New South Wales township of Binalong, where Rose spent most of her married life. In this book, we enter into the rustic world of late nineteenth-century pioneers, where women endured continuous cycles of pregnancy, childbirth and recovery, and the constraints of strict social codes. Rose faced the isolation of Illalong - 'this poor old prison of a habitation' - with resolute determination and an incisive wit. Her candid letters, written throughout the 1870s and 1880s, to her younger sister, Nora Murray-Prior, reveal a woman who found comfort in the shared confidences of correspondence and who did not lack for opinions on women's rights, health and education. Here we see a devoted sister, a loyal wife battling domestic drudgery with scarce resources, and an affectionate mother whose parenting approach embraced 'a little judicious neglect & occasional scrubbing'. 'Looking for Rose' recreates the world of Rose Paterson and, within the rhythm of her life, the bush childhood of 'Banjo' Paterson, which ultimately found a place in some of Australia's best-known verses.