A. E. (Arthur Edmund) Debenham papers, 1934-1992, together with the papers of Mary Debenham, 1937-1992

MLMSS 6650
SAFE/MLMSS 6650/1 (Safe 3/231)

fonds

1934-1992

Textual Records, Graphic Materials, Clippings, Photographs

80538

0.36 metres of textual material (2 boxes) - manuscript, typescript, typescript photocopy, typescript carbon, typescript with manuscript annotations, printed, printed photocopy
Clippings
Photographs

Arthur Edmund Debenham, AM (1897-199-), Stipendiary Magistrate, was born at Pampoolah, near Taree, N.S.W. Leaving school in 1914, he immediately began work in the Petty Sessions Branch of the N.S.W. Department of the Attorney General and Justice at Narrabri. In 1929, he became a solicitor and in 1945 was appointed a Police Magistrate. He held positions as Clerk of Petty Session, Chamber Magistrate and Stipendiary Magistrate, serving at Narrabri, Gosford, Liverpool, City Central, Water Police and Redfern Courts. At Redfern, as Stipendiary Magistrate of the Children's Court, he became well known to the public as the 'Children's Magistrate' for his championing of abused and delinquent children and set up a voluntary clinic for sexual offenders, with psychiatric and medical treatment provided by doctors sympathetic to his cause. Retiring in 1962, he published three books based on his life and work in the Children's Courts: Without Fear of Favour (1966), All Manner of People (1967) and The Innocent Victims (1969), was a legal advisor to the N.R.M.A., 1972-1974, and in 1975 was sole arbitrator for the International Air Transport Association. He was president of the Lilium Society for many years and was awarded the Australia Medal in 1976.

Mary Debenham, nee White (1970- ), nurse and social worker, was born in England and emigrated to N.S.W. with her family 1922. She trained in nursing at Sydney Hospital and joined the Royal Far West Children's Health Scheme in 1935, travelling throughout N.S.W. setting up and conducting children's health clinics, which work she continued after two years as an agency nurse in England, 1937-1939. Joining the N.S.W. Department of Child Welfare in 1945, she became a parole officer and then social worker, retiring in 1969. Mary was active in the Girl Guide movement in N.S.W. and was its representative to an international camp in Lithuania in 1938. In retirement she was involved in the N.S.W. Council on the Ageing and was Senior Citizen of the Year in 1984.

BOX 1

1948-1949; Letters received from parents of children brought before him, or in response to certain cases (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

1943-1990; Letters received from family members and colleagues. Correspondents include the N.S.W. Attorney-General C.E. Martin, 1946 and the N.S.W. Bicentennial Oral History Project (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

1938-1945; Applications for position in N.S.W. Child Welfare Department, 1938, and as an Assistant Magistrate, Children's Court, Sydney, 1944 and Certificate of Appointment as Police Magistrate, 1945 (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

1948-1957; File of notes on cases heard (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)
(Selected case papers, 1948-1951, removed from file and transferred to SAFE/MLMSS 6650/1)

194-; Subject file: 'Juvenile Delinquency (Studies)' (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

1934; Submission to N.S.W. Department of Child Welfare on the sentencing of boys over 18 years (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

1968; Scripts for the Channel 9 television series, 'The Unloved', for which he provided fictionalised accounts of cases of neglected or delinquent children from the N.S.W. Children's Court (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

1975-1976; Correspondence with, and report of arbitration for, the International Air Transport Association (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

1967; Draft of book "All Manner of People", assisted by Marion Dreyer, forward by Gordon Chater (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

195--197-; Original prose and poetry on a variety of topics such as nature, happiness, justice and old age; texts of addresses on work in juvenile courts and on religious themes (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

Date unknown; Notebooks on the theme of nature, including roses (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/1)

BOX 2
196--197-; Family history papers including family trees of the Berry, Belton and Debenham families; partial photocopy of Frank Debenham's book Seven Centuries of Debenhams; correspondence with and publications of Debenhams Limited, U.K.; and part of a reminiscence of childhhood at Laurieton, N.S.W. (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/2)

1916-1992; Photographs of Arthur Edmund Debenham, Mary Debenham nee White and the White family. Includes photographs taken by Mary at Menindee Aboriginal Mission and of Aboriginal graves at Collarenebri, N.S.W., 1944 (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/2)

1948-1970; Newscuttings, being mainly reports of cases heard at Liverpool Court of Petty Sessions, 1948-1949, and Redfern Court, 1955-1959 (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/2)

1937-1992; Diaries of Mary Debenham, nee White. Covers her visit to Britain and Europe, 1937-1939; attendance as N.S.W. representative to an international Girl Guide and Boy Scout camp in Lithuania, 1938; resumption of duties with the Royal Far West Children's Health Scheme, travelling throughout N.S.W., 1940-1945; employment by the N.S.W. Department of Child Welfare and later trips to the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Irregularly kept; entries become less frequent in later years. (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/2)

194-; Speech written by Mary Debenham, nee White on Girl Guides (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/2)

ca. 1942; Letters received regarding her work with the Royal Far West Children's Health Scheme (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/2)

1979; Photocopies of summons' signed by Mary Debenham, Justice of the Peace (Call No.: MLMSS 6650/2)

Partly restricted: Applies to MLMSS 6650/Box 1