Edith McKay

Edith McKay
Born	Gladys Edith McKay 20 February 1891 Rockhampton
Died	30 January 1963
Other names	Edith Dithmack
Known for	writer and nurse at Scottish Women's Hospitals for Foreign Service
Notable work	The House of Winston Blaker (1947)
Awards	Radio short story award 1949

Gladys Edith McKay (20 February 1891 – 30 January 1963) was an Australian writer and nurse who served in Serbia during World War I. ^[1] McKay is best known for her 1947 novel "The House of Winston Blaker".

Biography

McKay was born in Rockhampton, Queensland. She worked as a solicitor's clerk in Bundaberg before settling in the Boonah district. ^{[2] [3]}

During World War I, McKay volunteered as a nurse and was sent overseas to Gallipoli and Serbia with the Scottish Women's Hospitals for Foreign Service. ^{[4] [5]}

Her 1947 novel The House of Winston Blaker received mostly positive reviews nationally and was later adapted by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation as a radio serial. ^{[6] [7] [8] [9]}

McKay was also known for her short stories, written under the name of Edith Dithmack. ^[1] More than 120 of McKay's short stories were broadcast on ABC Radio in the 1940s. ^[10] In 1949, McKay won the ABC's short story competition in 1949 for Faith. ^[3]

ABC Radio adapted another of McKay's works into a serial format in 1952. Unborn Tomorrow, inspired by the history of Kanaka labour on the Queensland sugarcane fields, was aired from Monday to Friday at 8:45am. ^[11]

She died in 1963.

See also

• Other notable women volunteers in the Scottish Women's Hospitals for Foreign Service
• Women in World War I
• Australian women in World War I
• The Serbian campaign (1914-1915)

References

1. Author: Edith McKay, AustLit: The Australian Literature Resource. Accessed 20 August 2018.
2. (13 June 1946) Our Contributors: E. Dithmack, Western Mail . Retrieved from National Library of Australia 20 August 2018.
3. (12 July 1949) Boonah woman wins competition Archived 22 December 2020 at the Wayback Machine , Queensland Times . Retrieved from National Library of Australia 20 August 2018.
4. "Serbia, 1919. Portrait of nursing sisters Sterling (?Stirling) and Edith Mackay (on right)". Australian War Memorial . Archived from the original on 22 December 2020. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
5. "Mackay, Edith Jane (Nurse, Scottish Women's Hospital b.1875 - d.1961)". Australian War Memorial . Archived from the original on 22 December 2020. Retrieved 22 December 2020.
6. Miller, Simon (26 July 2013) The House of Winston Blaker: Business Front and Centre in a 1947 Novel, State Library of Queensland website. Retrieved 20 August 2018.
7. (25 November 1947) Queensland novel tells good tale, Maryborough Chronicle . Retrieved from National Library of Australia 20 August 2018.
8. (17 January 1948) Novel of the Week: The House of Winston Blaker Archived 22 December 2020 at the Wayback Machine , The Daily Telegraph . Retrieved from National Library of Australia 20 August 2018.
9. (3 January 1948) Four books of fiction Archived 22 December 2020 at the Wayback Machine , The Age . Retrieved from National Library of Australia 20 August 2018.
10. (12 July 1949) Story winner, The Courier-Mail . Retrieved from National Library of Australia 20 August 2018.
11. (23 April 1952) New radio serial by Queensland writer Archived 22 December 2020 at the Wayback Machine , Weekly Times . Retrieved from National Library of Australia 20 August 2018.