Friday 2 October 7.30pm

Helen Hennessy and Patricia Booth

The E.H. Coombe Project: Journalist, MP for the Barossa and                  Anti‐conscription champion

Ephraim Henry Coombe is a significant person in the history of Gawler and the State of South Australia. He used his positions of influence to champion many social causes. These included temperance, votes for women and the defence of those who were persecuted during World War One because of their German heritage. He opposed conscription and the closure of Lutheran schools.

Sadly, there was little that commemorated his life and achievements. This was particularly evident in Gawler, where he was born and spent 56 of his 58 years.

Since 2016 the E.H. Coombe project has gathered information about Ephraim, researched the gaps and now tells his story. The project is a collaboration between Patricia Booth, great‐grand‐daughter of E.H. Coombe and Helen Hennessy, local historian and former manager of the Gawler Public Library. Both women share a passion for history and an admiration of this gentleman.

Helen Hennessy was awarded the South Australian Regional Historian Award 2019 by the History Council of South Australia.