Kathleen Harris Anderson (née Hough; 1 November 1921 – 19 September 1996) was an Australian politician. She was a

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

member of the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. Along with the New South Wales Legislative As ...

from 1973 to 1981. Her husband,

Keith Anderson Keith Anderson (born January 12, 1968) is an American country music singer. Before signing to a record deal, Anderson was one of several co-writers on "Beer Run (B Double E Double R-U-N)", a duet by Garth Brooks and George Jones, released in la ...

, was briefly a member of the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House ...

(1961–1962), while her son, Peter Anderson, was a minister in the Unsworth Government (1986–1988). She was born Kathleen Harris Hough in

Canowindra Situated on the Belubula River, Canowindra (pronounced ) is a historic township and the largest population centre in Cabonne Shire, New South Wales, Cabonne Shire. The town is located between Orange, New South Wales, Orange and Cowra, New South ...

to carpenter Tom Hough, later secretary of the Bridge and Wharf Carpenters' Union, and his wife, who was matron of a private hospital in Rodd Street, Canowindra. She attended

Sydney Girls High School Sydney Girls High School (abbreviated as SGHS or Sydney Girls) is a Education in Australia#Government schools, government-funded Single-sex school, single-sex Selective school (New South Wales), academically selective secondary school, secondar ...

, and joined the Labor Party in 1963. In that year she became the first woman appointed to

Sydney County Council The Sydney County Council (SCC) was a County council (New South Wales), county council established in 1935 to produce electricity and operate the electricity network in a number of municipalities in metropolitan Sydney. SCC was established by t ...

, and served as chairperson from 1966 to 1970. She was active in the women's movement within the Labor Party, and was ultimately elected to the

in 1973. She became the first woman to serve as Government Whip in 1976. Anderson left the Council in 1981, and in 1982 was appointed a

Member of the Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an Australian honours and awards system, Australian honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Monarch ...

"in recognition of service to the community, politics and the government". She became a member of the Local Government Boundaries Commission in 1981, and a member of the Zoological Parks Trust in 1990. Anderson died in 1996 in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

References

1921 births 1996 deaths Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council Members of the Order of Australia 20th-century Australian politicians Women members of the New South Wales Legislative Council People educated at Sydney Girls High School Councillors of Sydney County Council 20th-century Australian women politicians {{Australia-Labor-NewSouthWales-MP-stub