Ethel “Ettie” Price

Ethel “Ettie” May Price was born in 1883 in Sydney, the daughter of Thomas Francis Price and Mary Ann Linck. She trained in England and worked at Greenwich Infirmary in 1911 before coming to Australia.

In 1916, Ethel began nursing at Lightning Ridge, living first at the Imperial Hotel and later at the Bush Nursing Association cottage. She took her meals at the Imperial Hotel during this time. She served the community for two years, tending to the remote and growing population during the early years of the opal field.

At a farewell event in August 1916, Nurse Price was presented with a black opal in appreciation of her service. Mr. Turley, president of the Progress Association, presented the gift on behalf of the town, as reported in The Daily Telegraph (Sydney) on 9 August 1916.

Ethel later married William Kilpatrick Kirkland in Ashfield in 1922. William, originally from Kilmarnock, Scotland, had enlisted during the First World War while serving as postmaster at Lightning Ridge. The couple adopted two children, Thomas and Mary, and settled in Sydney. Ethel went on to open her own maternity hospital in Haberfield.

Ethel May Kirkland (nee Price) passed away on 11 July 1974 in Marrickville at the age of 90 and was buried at Rookwood Necropolis. She was among the first nurses to serve Lightning Ridge, contributing to early health services during the community’s early years.

• Ethel May Price @ Find a Grave.

Article: Research by Leisa Carney, edited by Russell Gawthorpe. LRHS research compiled by Len Cram and Barbara Moritz. Sources: The Northwest Courier, 31 May 1916, p. 2; ‘Lightning Ridge, Tuesday’, Daily Telegraph, 9 August 1916, p. 5; The Lightning Ridge Book, Stuart Lloyd, 1967, pp. 110-111; Lightning Ridge - The Home of the Black Opal: Unique to the World, Gan Bruce, 1983, p[. 54, 160-161; Australasian Nurses’ Journal.