Alison Patrick

Alison Mary Houston Patrick (nee Hamer; 24 March 1921 – 16 March 2009) was an Australian historian and scholar of the French Revolution. In 1977 she was the first woman elected head of the Department of History at the University of Melbourne.

Early life and education Alison Mary Houston Hamer was born on 24 March 1921 in Kew, Victoria. She was the third child and only daughter of former nurse Nancy (née McLuckie) and solicitor Hubert Hamer. Her brothers included Sir Rupert Hamer, Premier of Victoria and David Hamer, federal Liberal politician. She was educated at St Catherine's School in Toorak and then graduated with a BA from the University of Melbourne in 1942 and was awarded the Dwight Prize. Her PhD thesis was published by Johns Hopkins University Press in 1972.

Career Patrick's career as an academic at the University of Melbourne began in 1946 when she was employed in a part-time role. In 1963 she was appointed lecturer, progressing to reader. In 1977 she was the first woman to be elected head of the Department of History at the University of Melbourne. Not long before her retirement in 1986, Patrick accepted the role of head of the Italian Department at the university.

She was elected Fellow of the Australian Academy of the Humanities. Her husband predeceased her on 8 November 2004.