Christian Jollie Smith

Who was Christian Jollie Smith?

Christian Brynhild Ochiltree Jollie Smith, was a socialist lawyer and co-founder of the Communist Party of Australia notable for her work representing striking miners, underprivileged tenants during the great depression and briefing legal council for the successful High Court challenges to the attempted exclusion of Egon Kisch from Australia and the Communist Party dissolution Act.

Born at Parkville, Melbourne, daughter of Scottish-born Thomas Jollie Smith and his Victorian wife Jessie Ochiltree. Brought up at Naracoorte, South Australia, where her father was Presbyterian minister. She was educated in Adelaide, and at Presbyterian Ladies' College, Melbourne, in 1904. Christian studied law at the University of Melbourne and was introduced to socialism by her friend Guido Baracchi. She belonged to a group of left-wing intellectuals including William Earsman, Louis Esson and his wife Hilda, and Katharine Susannah Prichard, and was active in the anti-conscription campaigns of World War I.

Jollie Smith worked as a solicitor, from 1914 onwards but chose a number of diverse career paths including journalism for her socialist political cause and teaching. Early in 1918 Jollie Smith was the first woman taxi-driver in Melbourne, under the trade name 'Pamela Brown'. In 1919 she taught English literature at Melbourne High, Brighton Grammar schools and the Labor College of New South Wales, Sydney. In December 1920 she became a foundation committee-member of the Communist Party of Australia and published the Sydney based Australian Communist from 1920-21.