Principal Occupants of Bishopscourt

1853-1874

BISHOP CHARLES PERRY was the first Bishop of Melbourne. He established the Anglican Church in Victoria, founding churches and schools and setting up its legal framework with a constitution.

MRS FRANCES PERRY is remembered for her charitable work on behalf of women and children, her main legacy being the Lying-in Hospital (now the Royal Women’s Hospital).

1874-1876

GOVERNOR SIR GEORGE BOWEN was a professional administrator having served as Chief Secretary of the Ionian Islands (Corfu) and as Governor of New Zealand and Queensland prior to being appointed Governor of Victoria. He was recalled after criticism of his handling of a constitutional crisis.

LADY DIAMANTINA BOWEN married Sir George while he served in Corfu. She was from one of the noble families on the island. She is commemorated by the Diamantina River in Queensland.

1877-1886

BISHOP JAMES MOORHOUSE was an accomplished preacher and took a prominent part in the social life of Victoria, not only with regard to issues concerning the church. He raised the funds for building St Paul’s Cathedral.

MRS MARY MOORHOUSE continued to support the charities established by Mrs Perry. She and her husband travelled constantly around Victoria and mixed widely in the general community.

1887-1901

BISHOP FIELD FLOWERS GOE took a conservative approach to his role to church issues, in contrast to his predecessor. He was not regarded as meeting the challenges to the church or the general community by the depression which struck Victoria shortly after his arrival, and he retired to England after the death of his wife.

MRS. EMMA GOE was a more vibrant personality than her husband and took the lead in many charitable organisations which advanced the interests of women. Her husband’s resignation on her death was an indication of his dependence on her. The stained glass windows in the Bishopscourt chapel are her memorial.

1904-1920

BISHOP/ARCHBISHOP HENRY LOWTHER CLARKE was the first Archbishop of Melbourne after the creation of the dioceses of Bendigo, Gippsland and Wangaratta in addition to the earlier Diocese of Ballarat. He and his family were the first residents of Bishopscourt as extended by Walter Butler.

MRS ALICE LOVELL CLARKE concentrated her charitable activities on Anglican organisations as social welfare increasingly became a government responsibility. As with her predecessor Mrs Goe, she died at Bishopscourt. The photographs of the house taken by the Clarke’s daughter Alice are a valuable record of the house during their occupancy.

1921-1929

ARCHBISHOP HARRINGTON CLARE LEES was an outgoing and hardworking Archbishop. During his term the towers of St. Paul’s Cathedral were built.  However he lost much of his popularity when he remarried soon after the death of his first wife. He died suddenly at Bishopscourt shortly after his remarriage.

MRS WINIFRED MARY LEES in contrast to her husband was a shy and retiring person who nonetheless dutifully performed her role in church organisations concerning women and girls. She was the third Archbishop’s wife to die at Bishopscourt. (died 1927)

MRS JOANNA MARY LEES had difficulty being accepted as the Archbishop’s second wife by the church and wider community. Her husband died three months after she moved into Bishopscourt.

1929-1941

ARCHBISHOP FREDERICK WALDEGRAVE HEAD believed the British Empire to be the embodiment of Christianity and was vocal in support of the allies during World War II. He was forthright in stating his views, some being controversial which did nothing to improve relations with the Roman Catholic Church. After suffering ill-health for a number of years he was killed when the car he was driving ran off the road.

MRS EDITH HEAD was acknowledged by her husband as his greatest help. Although plagued by ill-health from the time of her arrival in Melbourne she gave her support to women’s organisations in the church and to Janet Clarke Hall. She returned to England after her husband’s death.

1942-1956

ARCHBISHOP JOSEPH JOHN BOOTH in contrast to earlier Archbishops was born into an English working-class family and undertook his theological training in Australia. Serving as an army chaplain during World War II he was recalled from the Middle East to be appointed Archbishop. Recognised for his administrative ability he oversaw the reconstruction of the diocese after the war.

MRS BERYL BOOTH involved herself to a limited degree in church societies benefitting women and girls but regarded her primary role as supporting her husband by maintaining a smoothly running family home and environment in which he could best perform his duties, a view shared by her husband as being her proper sphere.

1957-1977

ARCHBISHOP SIR FRANK WOODS came from an English family of generations of Anglican clergy. During his tenure he was involved in social and political issues, oversaw the adoption of a national church constitution and divided the diocese into three regions. As Primate of Australia (1971-77) he fostered improved relations with the Catholic church, supported the ordination of women and was a leader in the international ecumenical movement.

LADY JEAN WOODS was a learned and talented woman who had to come to terms with maintaining the social life at Bishopscourt demanded by her husband’s role. Her deeply spiritual nature was expressed in her work with church and community organisations and migrant communities.

1978-1983

ARCHBISHOP ROBERT DANN began life in difficult circumstances, his family having been ruined in the depression. The first Australian born Archbishop of Melbourne, he advocated the ordination of women and the strengthening of relations with the Roman Catholic Church. He was vocal in his support of nuclear disarmament and indigenous rights.

MRS YVONNE DANN was the first Archbishop’s wife to engage in paid employment as well as fulfil her role as Archbishop’s wife. For many years she was a marriage counsellor for the Anglican Church while also maintaining a private practice from Bishopscourt. She was later appointed an examining chaplain for applicants to the ministry.

1984-1989

ARCHBISHOP DAVID PENMAN had extensive experience in parish and missionary work prior to his appointment as Archbishop, which gave him a particular interest in the multi-cultural community. The hospitality of Bishopscourt was extended to those involved in a wide range of community activities and he was instrumental in obtaining approval for the ordination of women. He died suddenly after only five years in office.

MRS JEAN PENMAN shared her husband’s commitment to many causes and activities in the church. The demands of these roles obliged her to give up her teaching career and concentrate on assisting her husband and organising the extensive hospitality dispensed at Bishopscourt. After her husband’s death Jean studied theology was ordained a priest.  She worked as an Anglican  school  chaplain until her retirement.

1990-2000

ARCHBISHOP KEITH RAYNER was elected after a long delay as a compromise candidate between the liberal and conservative wings of the church. His prior experience as Bishop of Wangaratta and Archbishop of Adelaide gave him a preference for decision making by consensus. It was during his tenure that the first women clergy were ordained and proposals were made to subdivide the grounds of Bishopscourt.

MRS AUDREY RAYNER saw her role as assisting her husband and most of her work in the church was in support of the Mothers’ Union and the wives of clergy.

2000-2005

ARCHBISHOP PETER WATSON had been a Bishop in New South Wales prior to his appointment to Melbourne. He brought a new management style to the administration of the finances of the diocese.

MRS MARGO WATSON maintained the extensive hospitality that was by now expected from Bishopscourt on a much more restricted budget than was available in New South Wales.

2006-

ARCHBISHOP PHILIP FREIER had previously served as Bishop of the Northern Territory and while at Bishopscourt was appointed Primate of Australia (June 2014-March 2020). Initially a teacher, much of his life was spent in outback Queensland and the Northern Territory where he established a special interest in the welfare of the indigenous people, and also with refugees.

MRS JOY FREIER shared her husband’s experience in Northern Australia as a teacher and continued that role after moving to Melbourne. She is deeply involved in many church organisations, indigenous welfare and the Dream Stitches Program for Refugee and Asylum Seekers, especially Sudanese women, while continuing the tradition of hospitality at Bishopscourt.