Constance Robertson Explained

Constance (Connie) Robertson (1895–1964) was an Australian journalist best known as women's editor of the Sydney Morning Herald.

Biography

Robertson was born on 16 October 1895 in Sydney. She was the eldest of six children of Constance (née Ivingsbelle) and Alfred George Stephens, literary critic for The Bulletin. She was educated by her father and then worked on The Bookfellow from 1911–1916. In 1917 she moved to the Sydney Sun.

Robertson edited Woman's Budget from 1930 to 1936, before becoming editor of the women's supplement of the Sydney Morning Herald (and later of the Sunday Herald and the Sun-Herald).

She was an accredited war correspondent in World War II.^[1] She continued to write a weekly column for the Herald after she retired in April 1962.

Personal life and death

She married journalist William Kinnear Robertson on 25 July 1917. Robertson died of cerebrovascular disease at North Sydney on 3 March 1964. Her husband predeceased her a few days earlier. She was survived by her daughter Margot.

Recognition and legacy

Robertson was appointed an Officer of the British Empire in 1955.^[2] She has been inducted into the Australian Media Hall of Fame. Her papers are held at the State Library of NSW.^[3]

Further reading

• Book: Lawson . Connie sweetheart : the story of Connie Robertson . 1990 . Heinemann Australia . 978-0-85561-353-2.
• Book: Souter . Company of Heralds : a century and a half of Australian publishing by John Fairfax Limited and its predecessors, 1831–1981 . 1981 . Melbourne University Press . 978-0-522-84218-0.

Notes and References

1. Web site: Clarke . Patricia . Constance Robertson . Australian Media Hall of Fame.
2. Web site: Mrs Constance Robertson . 2023-06-26 . Australian Honours Search Facility.
3. Web site: Constance Robertson papers, 1915-1963 . 2023-06-26 . Collection - State Library of NSW . en.