In 1898, Ethel Mary Vaughan Cowan made history as the first female doctor at Melbourne’s children’s hospital, setting a trail for countless individuals who followed in her footsteps. In recognition of her contributions and legacy, Cowan Lane was named in her honor in Carlton in 2024, just a short distance from where the hospital once stood. This monumental acknowledgment was part of a broader effort in Victoria to celebrate women’s achievements by naming places after them. In the previous year, it was noted that 57 percent of new commemorative place names were dedicated to women, marking a historic moment where the number of places named after women surpassed those named after men for the first time. Kerry Wilson, the project lead for “Put Her Name on It,” a campaign aimed at increasing the representation of women in commemorative names, hailed this as a victory towards their target of 70 percent set by the government’s gender equality strategy for 2023-2027. Looking forward, as Victoria continues to develop, over 6,000 new places are set to be named, giving the public an opportunity to nominate unsung heroes from their communities for consideration. Despite the progress made, the struggle to balance the gender representation in place names and public art remains; women are present in only 10 percent of place names and just 3 percent of public art in Victoria. This underrepresentation highlights the deep-rooted issue of patriarchy, which has historically led to the celebration and commemoration of men’s achievements over women’s. Efforts to bridge this gap include initiatives like “A Monument of One’s Own,” co-founded by historian Clare Wright, which advocates for more statues and monuments honoring women. The City of Melbourne is also taking steps to address the imbalance, such as the planned installation of a statue of suffrage leader Vida Goldstein, a pioneer in the fight for women’s right to vote in Australia. This move signifies a step towards changing the narrative of what and whom we choose to remember and celebrate in our public spaces.

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2025/mar/08/on-the-map-victoria-names-more-new-places-after-women-than-men-for-the-first-time