Writer, Editor, Lecturer & Social Reformer
Location: RC*N*4
Caroline Dexter Lynch was one of colonial Australia’s most distinctive female literary and reform figures. A writer, editor, lecturer and advocate for women’s education and health, she moved between England, New South Wales and Victoria during a period when few women occupied such a public role. Although she is remembered today as Caroline Dexter Lynch, she was born Caroline Harper at Nottingham, England, on 6 January 1819, the daughter of Richard Harper, a watchmaker and jeweller, and his wife Mary née Simson. Later accounts record that she received a private education in England and Paris.
During the early nineteenth century Caroline developed interests in literature, public speaking and social reform that would shape the rest of her life. She married artist William Dexter at Nottingham in the early 1840s and became known publicly as Caroline Dexter. Her husband emigrated to Sydney in 1852 and she followed aboard the Marie Gabrielle, arriving at the close of 1854.
Soon after reaching Sydney, the Dexters established a Gallery of Arts and School of Design in Bathurst Street. William taught drawing and painting while Caroline advertised instruction in literature, grammar, composition, conversation and elocution. She quickly established herself as a public lecturer. At the Sydney School of Arts in March 1855 she delivered a lecture on “Judith” and the social position of women, demonstrating an unusual willingness to participate in public debate at a time when female speakers were still comparatively rare.
The venture was not financially successful and in 1856 the couple relocated to Gippsland. They lived around Stratford and later Sale, but the marriage deteriorated. Caroline left Gippsland for Melbourne in 1857 and the separation became permanent. William Dexter returned to Sydney, where he died in February 1860.
On 20 July 1861, Caroline married Brighton solicitor William Lynch. Contemporary notices described her as “Caroline Harper Dexter, widow of William Dexter”, firmly connecting the three surnames under which she is now known. No evidence has been found that she had children from either marriage.
Caroline’s literary career reached its greatest visibility during the years immediately before her second marriage. In 1858, she published Ladies Almanack, 1858: The Southern Cross; or, Australian Album and New Year’s Gift, widely regarded as the first ladies’ almanac produced in the Australian colonies. The volume combined calendars and practical information with poetry, essays, sketches of colonial life and reflections on Australian scenery. It encouraged readers to regard local landscapes and experiences as worthy literary subjects rather than simply imitations of British models.
Her writings covered an unusually broad range of topics. Poems, humorous sketches, observations of emigrant life, commentary on colonial society and reflections on the Australian environment all appeared in her work. She also published under pseudonyms including “Budgery” and probably “Gum Leaf”. One of the best-known of these publications was Miss Madeline Smith: The Glasgow Poisoning Case … Emile & Madeline; or, Love and Murder, a sensational work inspired by a celebrated Scottish criminal case. Contemporary reports attributed the pamphlet to Caroline and a second edition appeared shortly after publication.
In 1858, she was also associated with Colonial Gems; or, “The Ninety”: Foundation Stones of Our Parliament House, a satirical commentary on Victorian politicians. Although published under a pseudonym, later evidence connected the work to Lynch. She additionally planned a publication on members of the Victorian Parliament, circulating questionnaires to legislators, although the project was never completed.
Perhaps her most significant contribution to Australian publishing came with The Interpreter: An Australian Monthly Magazine of Science, Literature, Art, &c., which she produced with reformer and physician Harriet Clisby. Only two issues appeared, in January and February 1861, yet the magazine has been recognised as the first Australian periodical published by women. Its contents ranged across literature, science, health, fiction and social commentary. Caroline’s contributions criticised aspects of English industrial society, questioned colonial dependence upon Britain and expressed concern for the treatment of Indigenous Australians.
Alongside her literary work, Caroline became a prominent advocate for dress reform and women’s health. Before emigrating she lectured in England while wearing the shortened skirts and trousers associated with the “Bloomer” movement. She argued that conventional women’s clothing harmed health, restricted movement and imposed unnecessary financial burdens. Newspapers frequently reported both her lectures and the controversy they generated.
After arriving in Australia she continued to campaign for women’s education and physical wellbeing. Her Sydney lectures and letters to newspapers connected health, clothing, education and social status. Contemporary reports indicate that she attracted both enthusiastic supporters and determined critics. In 1856, she was presented with a silver cup and salver in recognition of her services to women’s education.
In Melbourne, Caroline expanded her activities by establishing what was described as an Institute of Hygiene. She promoted dress reform and healthier living while also becoming involved with the era’s fashionable interests in mesmerism and electro-magnetic therapy. These pursuits reflected nineteenth-century beliefs about health and treatment rather than modern medical practice, but they demonstrate her continuing interest in social improvement and personal wellbeing.
Caroline was also notable for her criticism of settler treatment of Aboriginal people. Although her views remained shaped by the assumptions of her own era, she openly condemned what she regarded as the betrayal and mistreatment of Indigenous Australians. Such views were uncommon in much contemporary colonial literature and distinguished her from many of her contemporaries.
Following her marriage to William Lynch, Caroline settled in Brighton. Her husband became one of the district’s leading solicitors and served as Mayor of Brighton in 1880-81. At their home, Bombala, Caroline continued to support writers, artists and intellectual life. She also played a role in forming an important collection of Australian art, including works associated with her first husband.
Caroline died at Brighton on 19 August 1884, aged 65 years. The Brighton General Cemetery burial register records her residence as Brighton, her birthplace as Nottingham, England, and her cause of death as cerebral softening and paralysis. She was buried on 20 August 1884 in grave RC*N*4, with the service conducted by Rev. M. Carey. Her cemetery record identified her occupation simply as “Wife”, reflecting the conventions of nineteenth-century record keeping rather than the breadth of her achievements.
Today, Caroline Dexter Lynch is remembered as an early Australian woman of letters whose activities extended beyond literature into journalism, publishing, education, public speaking and social reform. Her career demonstrated that women could participate in colonial intellectual life as writers, editors and public advocates. The grave at Brighton General Cemetery commemorates a woman whose influence reached well beyond the domestic role by which official records chose to describe her.
Sources:
Australian Dictionary of Biography, “Lynch, Caroline (1819-1884)”, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
Design and Art Australia Online, “Caroline Dexter”.
National Library of Australia, Ladies Almanack, 1858: The Southern Cross; or, Australian Album and New Year’s Gift (Melbourne, 1858).
The Empire (Sydney), various notices and reports relating to Caroline Dexter, 1855-1856.
The Age (Melbourne), marriage notice, 24 July 1861.
AustLit, records relating to Caroline Dexter Lynch and The Interpreter (1861).
Harriet Clisby and Caroline Dexter, The Interpreter: An Australian Monthly Magazine of Science, Literature, Art, &c., January-February 1861.
Speaking While Female Speech Bank, “Caroline Dexter”.
Victorian Collections, testimonial card for “Madam Carole’s Mesmeric Institution”.
National Library of Australia, Trove newspaper collection, various reports concerning Caroline Dexter Lynch, William Dexter and William Lynch.