Person
Anderson, Alecia Elizabeth Foley (Alice) (1897 - 1926)
- Born
- 8 June 1897
Melbourne, Victoria, Australia - Died
- 17 September 1926
Kew, Victoria, Australia - Occupation
- Business woman and mechanic
Summary
Alice Anderson was a mechanic and business woman who established her own garage in the Melbourne suburb of Kew in 1919. Her father was shire engineer for several rural districts, one of his ventures being the Blacks' Spur Motor Service Co. Ltd. Anderson started working here in 1916 and had a hand in managing the Garage. Having learned to drive on the treacherous roads of the Healesville region, she operated the Garage's mail delivery and driving services in the area. She established her own chauffeuring business in the Melbourne suburb of Kew in 1917. Having qualified as a mechanic, Anderson extended her business to that of a garage, the Alice Anderson Motor Service (also known as Kew Garage). It offered petrol sales, vehicle repairs, a driving school, a 24-hour chauffeur service, and instruction in car mechanics. The business was notable for the quality of its services and for employing only women mechanics and chauffeurs. After her death the Garage continued to operate, although its emphasis changed to that of a driving school.
Skip to
Details
Chronology
- 1916 - 1917
- Career position - Driver and chauffeur, Blacks' Spur Motor Service Co. Ltd
- 1917 - 1919
- Career event - Ran chauffeuring service in Kew, Victoria
- 1918
- Career position - Founding Secretary, Women's Automobile Club
- 1919 - 1926
- Career position - Proprietor, Alice Anderson Motor Service (also known as Kew Garage)
Published resources
Books
- Smith, Loretta, A spanner in the works: the extraordinary story of Alice Anderson and Australia's first all-girl garage (Sydney: Hachette Australia, 2019), 366 pp. Details
Book Sections
- Clarsen, Georgine, 'Anderson, Alice Elizabeth (1897 - 1926)' in Australian dictionary of biograhy: supplement 1580 - 1980, with a name index to the Australian dictionary of biography to 1980, Cunneen, Christopher, ed. (Carlton, Vic.: Melbourne University Press, 2005), pp. 8-9. Details
Journal Articles
- Laurensen, Geoff, 'Nothing ventured, nothing gained: Alice Anderson - mechanic, chauffeur and entrepreneur', University of Melbourne collections, 14 (2014), 16-21. Details
Helen Cohn
Created: 19 April 2022