Fellowship: Experiences of Polio in 1950s Australia

Overview

Professor Catharine Coleborne presents her recent Fellowship research, focusing on her discoveries about the health and illness experiences of poliomyelitis (polio) in regional Australia across the 20th century.

Poliomyelitis (polio) has largely been hidden from national historical narratives of post-war Australia. Professor Catharine Coleborne has closely examined the Library's collections, particularly interviews from the Social history of Polio oral history project. These testimonials share details about treatment and care, family interactions with medical professionals in regional settings and evolving understandings of the illness. Focusing on the period 1950 to 1970, it reflects the most significant polio outbreaks and their aftermath.

Professor Coleborne is a 2025 National Library of Australia Fellow, supported in memory of Professor Ivor Jones.