# Shirley Walters

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For the Arkansas politician, see [Shirley A. Walters](/source/Shirley_A._Walters).

**Mary Shirley Walters** (née **Harrison**; 31 August 1925 – 18 June 2017) was an Australian politician who served as a [Senator](/source/Australian_Senate) for [Tasmania](/source/Tasmania) from 1975 to 1993, representing the [Liberal Party](/source/Liberal_Party_of_Australia). She was the first woman to represent Tasmania in the Senate, and was known for her [social conservatism](/source/Social_conservatism).

## Early life

Mary Shirley Harrison was born in [Sydney](/source/Sydney), [New South Wales](/source/New_South_Wales), to [Eric John Harrison](/source/Eric_Harrison) and the former Mary Cook McCall. Her father was also a politician, serving as a government minister under [Robert Menzies](/source/Robert_Menzies) and later as [High Commissioner to the United Kingdom](/source/High_Commissioner_of_Australia_to_the_United_Kingdom). Her mother died in 1941 (when she was 15), and her father remarried a few years later. Harrison and her two sisters grew up in [Rose Bay](/source/Rose_Bay,_New_South_Wales), and attended [Kambala School](/source/Kambala_School). She became an accounts clerk with the [Rural Bank of New South Wales](/source/Rural_Bank_of_New_South_Wales) after leaving school, but later trained as a nurse and began working at [Royal Prince Alfred Hospital](/source/Royal_Prince_Alfred_Hospital) (RPA). In 1949, Harrison married obstetrician David Walters, whom she had first met in high school. They moved to [Hobart](/source/Hobart), [Tasmania](/source/Tasmania), after he had completed his residency at RPA, and had four children together.[1]

## Public life

Walters had been required to give up nursing when she married, but returned to the profession once her children were older and became a senior nurse at [St John's Hospital, South Hobart](/source/Calvary_Hospital,_Hobart). She was a member of the state committee of the [National Trust](/source/National_Trust_of_Australia), and was prominent in the Right to Life Association. In 1975, she represented the RLA at a women's health conference at the [University of Queensland](/source/University_of_Queensland); her advocacy of conservatism in sex education brought her to the attention of the public.[1]

### Senator for Tasmania

Walters was elected to the Senate at the [December 1975 federal election](/source/1975_Australian_federal_election), which followed [the dismissal](/source/1975_Australian_constitutional_crisis) of the [Whitlam government](/source/Whitlam_government). She was placed fifth on the Liberal Party ticket, defeating two sitting senators ([Eric Bessell](/source/Eric_Bessell) and [John Marriott](/source/John_Marriott_(Australian_politician))) for [preselection](/source/Preselection). She became the first woman to represent Tasmania in the Senate, and only the second Tasmanian woman elected to parliament as a whole (after [Enid Lyons](/source/Enid_Lyons), MHR 1943–1951). Walters was re-elected to the Senate in [1977](/source/1977_Australian_federal_election), [1983](/source/1983_Australian_federal_election), and [1987](/source/1987_Australian_federal_election), in each occasion placed either first or second on the ticket. She announced her retirement in September 1991, with her final term ending in June 1993.[1]

## Later life

Walters remained involved in the Liberal Party's organisational wing after her retirement from the Senate, and in 2003 was awarded life membership.[2] She died in June 2017, aged 91.[1][3]

## See also

- [Women in the Australian Senate](/source/Women_in_the_Australian_Senate)

## References

1. Morris, Don (2017). Retrieved 2023-01-24.

1. ["Condolences: Walters, Ms Mary SHirley"](https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/download/chamber/hansards/1b7c6ef2-042a-473e-8860-145c2e88002f/toc_pdf/Senate_2017_06_21_5156_Official.pdf). 2017-06-21.

1. ["Death notice: Walters, Shirley"](https://www.weeklytimesnow.com.au/tributes/notice/death-notices/walters-shirley/4058986/). *[The Mercury](/source/The_Mercury_(Hobart))*. 2017-06-23. Retrieved 2023-01-24.

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [Shirley Walters](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirley_Walters) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shirley_Walters?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.