 | This articlerelies largely or entirely on asingle source. Relevant discussion may be found on thetalk page. Please helpimprove this article byintroducing citations to additional sources. Find sources: "Isabel Longworth" – news ·newspapers ·books ·scholar ·JSTOR(February 2022) |
Isabel Longworth | |
|---|---|
 Isabel Longworth in 1954 | |
| Born | Isabel Frances Swann (1881-06-01)1 June 1881 |
| Died | 13 January 1961(1961-01-13) (aged 79) Newcastle,New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation | Dentist |
| Known for | Peace activism |
| Spouse | |
Isabel Frances Longworth (1 June 1881 – 13 January 1961) was an Australian dentist andpeace activist.
BornIsabel Frances Swann on 1 June 1881 inTemora, she was the daughter of English-born schoolteacher William Swann and Elizabeth,née Devlin.
Swann was registered as a dentist on 20 June 1902 and began practising atParramatta; by 1912 she had an address on Liverpool Street. Brought up in apacifist family, her patients includedMiles Franklin,Jennie Scott Griffiths, and others, and she joined theAustralian Freedom League in 1912. She was a militant anti-conscriptionist who was disappointed with the attitude taken byRose Scott and her supporters, who Swann saw as advocating war in the name of defence.[1]
In the late 1910s, Swann was a speaker at Socialist Sunday Schools and became involved in a number of controversial causes, including opposition to saluting the flag in schools and the Howard Prison Reform League. A correspondent ofHenry Holland, she claimed partial responsibility for endingindentured labour inFiji as part of the Anglo-Indian committee. She hidNew Guinean natives in Sydney until their shipboard conditions improved and represented theWomen's International League for Peace and Freedom at the Australian Peace Alliance conference in 1921.[1]
On 23 August 1924, she married William Longworth, a grinder, atRandwick; they had one daughter, Isabel Jean. The family moved toWyong in 1932 where they attempted to growpassionfruit commercially, and then toNewcastle in 1936. She helped organise a peace conference with the Christian Socialist Movement, where she argued againstfascism. A supporter of theSoviet Union, Longworth unsuccessfully contested theHouse of Representatives seats ofNewcastle (1946) andShortland (1949) as an Independent Scientific Socialist. At the age of 78, she was recognised as the longest-practising dentist in Australia.[1]
Longworth died on 13 January 1961 at Newcastle and was cremated withCongregational forms.[1]
