Elizabeth Fisher

Elizabeth Fisher (1793 - 1857), pioneer and Lady Mayoress, emigrated to South Australia in July 1836 aboard HMS Buffalo with her husband Sir James Hurtle Fisher, solicitor and the first Resident Commissioner of the new colony, and their eight children.

Aged 43 and eight months pregnant when she disembarked from the ship on 1 February 1837, Fisher settled into a hut near the corner of North and West Terraces with her family. Her baby Emily was born 2 March 1837 and christened on 21 July 1838 - one of the first baptisms conducted at the newly built Trinity Church on North Terrace.

The Fishers were appointed the inaugural Mayor and Mayoress of the City of Adelaide, serving from 1840 to 1842, and again in 1852 to 1854. James Hurtle Fisher was the first resident South Australian to be knighted, awarded a Knight Bachelor in 1860 for his services to the state. We recognise Elizabeth as one of Adelaide’s founding females.

Celebrating 125 years of women's suffrage in South Australia.

Image: City of Adelaide Archives