Cardell-Oliver, Florence (1876–1965)

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Cardell-Oliver, Florence (1876–1965)

Australian politician. Name variations: Annie Florence Gillies Cardell-Oliver; Dame Florence Cardell-Oliver. Born May 11, 1876, in Stawell, Victoria, Australia; died Jan 12, 1965; dau. of Annie Thompson and Johnson Wilson; m. Arthur Cardell-Oliver (physician, died 1929); children: 2 sons.

Studied in England; married and returned to Perth with husband (1914); unsuccessfully contested the federal seat of Freemantle (1934); won as Nationalist candidate for the State seat of Subiaco (1936); was the 1st woman in Australia to be appointed to a state cabinet, when she was named Western Australian minister for Health, Supply and Shipping (1949), serving until 1953; was responsible for the introduction of compulsory testing for tuberculosis and the distribution of free milk for schoolchildren, among other initiatives. Awarded DBE (1951).

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Cardell-Oliver, Florence (1876–1965)

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