| Creator: |
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| Date of birth: |
1882 |
| Place of birth: |
Hawthorne, Melbourne |
| Date of death: |
1941 |
| Place of death: |
Kew, Melbourne |
| Biography: |
Enid Derham was an Australian university lecturer and poet. She was born on 24 March 1882 in Hawthorn, Melbourne, to Thomas Plumley Derham, Bristol-born solicitor, and Ellen Hyde. She began her education at Hessle College and was later admitted to Presbyterian Ladies’ College. In 1900, Enid enrolled at The University of Melbourne, studying Classical Philology under Professor T. G. Tucker. After enrolling at The University of Melbourne, she became a member of the Princess Ida Club, whose purpose was to "promote the common interests of, and to form a bond of union between the present and past women students". Enid became extensively involved in the club, and was eventually appointed to the committee. In 1903, she graduated with a B.A. (first class honours), and went on to complete an M.A. in English and modern languages in 1905. During this time she began writing poetry.
After graduating, Enid remained involved in the University of Melbourne community, tutoring English at Trinity and Ormond Colleges, the University Extension Board, and the Workers' Educational Association. In 1910, she and eighteen other women formed the Catalysts’ Society, a club for intellectual discussion based on the Lyceum Clubs in England. Enid presented the first paper to the society, entitled ‘The Works of Thomas Hardy’. Building on the success of the Catalysts’, Derham and other original members of the group, along with other female intellectuals formed The Lyceum Club, Melbourne. Enid was also a founding member of the Classical Association of Victoria.
In 1912, a small collection of her poetry was published, entitled ‘The Mountain Road and Other Verses’ along with a short play entitled ‘Empire: A Morality Play for Children’. In 1921, she was given the post of temporary lecturer at the University of Western Australia. In 1922, she was appointed as a lecturer in the English department of The University of Melbourne, a position which she held until her death in 1941. In 1924, Enid attended the Locarno Conference on New Education in Locarno, Switzerland. In 1927, she took a twelve month leave of absence, and travelled extensively throughout Egypt, the Mediterranean, Europe, and England.
Enid Derham died on 13 November, 1941. In 1958, a posthumous collection of her poetry entitled ‘Poems’ was published by the Melbourne University Press.
Rosemary Francis and Jane Carey, The Catalysts' Society (1910 - ), The Australian Women’s Register, http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE0550b.htm, accessed 28 June 2013.
Anne Heywood, ‘Derham, Enid (1882 - 1941)’, The Australian Women’s Register, http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE0312b.htm, accessed 28 June 2013.
Imelda Palmer, 'Derham, Enid (1882–1941)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/derham-enid-5960/text10169, accessed 28 June 2013.
University of Melbourne Archives, Melbourne University Princess Ida Club, 1963.0030, Box 1, Minute Book March 27 1897-August 13 1908. |
| Activities/Occupation: |
Academics - English, Poets |
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