Dame Harriette Joanna Vine DBE OStJ (6 April 1878 – 1962) was a New Zealand lawyer. She was the first woman to graduate with a degree in law from Victoria University of Wellington.[1] She received a number of awards for her work with the Order of St John.[2]
Harriette Vine | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 6 April 1878 Dunedin, New Zealand |
| Died | 1962 Whanganui, New Zealand |
| Nationality | New Zealander |
| Education | Victoria University of Wellington |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Known for | first woman law graduate from Victoria University of Wellington |
Early life
editVine was born in Dunedin on 6 April 1878. Her parents were English immigrants Edward and Sarah Vine. She attended Anderson's Bay School, and Otago Girl's High School. The family moved to Whanganui, in New Zealand's North Island, and she passed the university matriculation examination in 1904.[1]
Vine studied law at Victoria University of Wellington, graduating in 1913 with a bachelor of law and in 1915 with a master of law. She was the first woman to graduate in law from the university.[2]
Career
editAfter graduating, Vine returned to Whanganui and worked as a lawyer in the firm Treadwell and Gordon, specialising in banking, trust, wills and company work.[1][2] She remained with the firm for 47 years.
Vine was active in the Order of St. John and in 1930 she was made an Officer of the Order of St John.[3] She was also made a Dame Commander of the British Empire for this work.[1][2]
Vine died when she was hit by a train while walking home from work. She was 84 years old.[2]
Legacy
editVine left her home to the Whanganui District Council in her will; the Harriette Vine Free Kindergarten was built on the land.[2]
In 2014, the Wellington Women Lawyers Association commemorated the centenary of Vine's graduation from the university with an essay competition titled "Harriette’s challenges 100 years on: same or different?”.[4] The Victoria University of Wellington Law Review published the two winning entries in a special issue on women in law.[5][6]
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ a b c d "Dame Harriette Joanna Vine, 1878-1962". lawsociety.org.nz. Archived from the original on 17 February 2018. Retrieved 24 September 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f Hughes, Beryl (1992). Redbrick and Bluestockings: Women at Victoria, 1899–1993. Wellington, New Zealand: Victoria University of Wellington. p. 22.
- ^ "London Gazette" (PDF). 3 January 1930. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
- ^ "Wellington.scoop.co.nz » Who's Harriette? VUW celebrating centenary of first woman law graduate". wellington.scoop.co.nz. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
- ^ "SPECIAL ISSUE IN HONOUR OF HARRIETTE VINE, FIRST WOMAN LAW GRADUATE 1913: 100 YEARS ON, HOW MANY MORE TO GO? CHALLENGES FACING WOMEN IN LAW IN 2013". litigation-essentials.lexisnexis.com. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
- ^ "Celebrating Harriette Vine | Faculty of Law | Victoria University of Wellington". www.victoria.ac.nz. Retrieved 16 September 2017.