Australia: Florence Mary Taylor
Born in 1879 in Bedminster, Somerset, England, Florence Mary Taylor is considered the first professional woman architect in Australia. She is also the first woman to graduate with a diploma in Architecture in Australia (1904), the first woman to be nominated for membership into New South Wales Institute of Architects (1907), and the first woman to become an associate member (1920) and full status member (1923) of the New South Wales Institute of Architects. Florence Mary Taylor studied Architecture at the Sydney Technical College located in Sydney, Australia (1899-1904) where she was the only woman in her class.
Florence Mary Taylor worked in a clerical role at the architectural office of Francis Ernest Stowe in Parramatta (c. 1899). She then worked as a draftsperson for Edward Skelton Garton and then John Burcham Clamp, who nominated her for the membership to the New South Wales Institute of Architects. Taylor established and co-owned the Building Publishing Company with her husband, George Augustine Taylor. She contributed as editor to numerous magazines affiliated with Building Publishing Company including Building (evolved to Building, Lighting, and Engineering), Construction, and The Commonwealth Home until her retirement (1961). Florence Mary Taylor is also known as a founding member of the Town Planning Association of New South Wales (1913). Amongst her other accomplishments, Florence Mary Taylor became an honorary member of the Australian Institute of Buildings (AIB); a fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, London; appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (C.B.E.) (1961); appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire (O.B.E.) (1939), and she earned awards in the architectural design section of the “First Australian Exhibition of Women’s Work (1907). Florence Mary Taylor died in 1969 in Potts Point, a suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.
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