Mickey Dewar Explained

Mickey Dewar
Birth Name:Michelle Sue Dewar
Birth Date:1956 1, df=yes
Birth Place:Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Death Place:Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
Nationality:Australian
Workplaces:Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory
Northern Territory Library
Alma Mater:University of Melbourne
Northern Territory University
University of South Australia
Thesis Title:In search of the Never-Never: the Northern Territory metaphor in Australian writing
Thesis Year:1993
Doctoral Advisors:)-->
Spouse:David Ritchie
Partners:)-->

Michelle Sue "Mickey" Dewar (1 January 1956 – 23 April 2017) was an Australian historian who specialised in the history of the Northern Territory.

Career

Dewar was originally from Melbourne where she studied at the University of Melbourne. She moved to the Northern Territory in 1980 to study teaching at Northern Territory University, and then worked as a teacher in the remote Milingimbi community in Arnhem Land.[1] She completed a PhD at NTU in 1993.[2]

In 1994, she joined the Museum and Art Gallery of the Northern Territory as the museum's curator of Territory history. She developed the popular Cyclone Tracy exhibition and was also in charge of heritage management of the Fannie Bay Gaol and Lyons Cottage historic sites.

In 2007, Dewar was awarded the Frederick Watson Fellow[3] research grant. Her topic was: An examination of the characteristics and attributes of post-war Darwin, through a detailed and multidisciplinary study of Commonwealth public housing policy. The paper was presented at National Archives in Canberra on 28 October 2008 titled Darwin – No Place Like Home : A history of Australia’s northern capital in the 1950s through a study of housing.[4]

In 2011, she won the Northern Territory History Book Award for the book Darwin – No Place Like Home.[5]

Personal life

Dewar married David Ritchie. She has two children.[6]

Dewar died on 23 April 2017 aged 61 from an aggressive form of motor neurone disease.

She was posthumously awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for service to the community of the Northern Territory in the 2018 Australia Day Honours.[7]

Publications

Notes and References

  1. News: Prominent local NT historian Mickey Dewar dies aged 61. 1 May 2017. ABC News. 1 May 2017. en-AU.
  2. Web site: In search of the Never-Never : looking for Australia in Northern Territory writing / Mickey Dewar. Trove. National Library of Australia. 1 May 2017.
  3. Web site: Frederick Watson Fellowship. National Archives. National Library of Australia. 3 May 2017.
  4. Web site: Dr Mickey Dewar. National Archives. National Library of Australia. 3 May 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20190401101558/http://naa.gov.au/about-us/grants/frederick-watson/dewar.aspx. 1 April 2019. dead.
  5. News: Historian wins book award. 1 May 2017. ABC News. 13 May 2011. en-AU.
  6. News: Mickey Sue (Michelle) DEWAR. 3 May 2017. The Age. Obituaties. 26 April 2017.
  7. Web site: The late Dr Michelle Sue DEWAR . Australian Honours Search Facility . Australian Government . 16 January 2022.