Marriage: Love and Law exhibition catalogue - Flipbook - Page 98
Our marriage—Judith Coles to Howard MacCallum—took place earlier in the
day at St Aiden’s Anglican Church, Longueville. The ceremony was held
at 11.30 am on Saturday 16 February 1974 followed by lunch at Windsor
Gardens, Chatswood. I wore a white chiffon and lace ankle-length dress with
a veil but no train, and the groom wore a pale blue suit. The three bridesmaids
wore floral pink chiffon dresses and pink wide brim hats. The groomsmen wore
dark blue suits. The church was decorated with fresh flowers in white and
pink, which matched my bouquet of stephanotis and white carnations and the
bridesmaid’s bouquets of bright pink roses. It was a warm, humid day in Sydney
and after the ceremony the humidity turned to a few sprinkles of rain.
We sheltered under a large pink and white beach umbrella outside the church
to talk with guests and pose for a few photographs. A friend of the groom’s
father, a press photographer, took the official photos. There were only a few
rolls of colour film, with most photographs being shot in black and white.
Thinking back to the 1970s, it was a time of change, especially for women.
I was the last of my immediate girlfriends to marry. We were all in our early
20s, had tertiary education and careers, and planned to work for a few years
before starting a family. But many of our wider circle of friends didn’t marry
until later. Feminism was gaining traction, contraception was widely available
and women were becoming more independent. This allowed women freedom
to explore the world, engage fully in careers and have multiple partners before
settling down.
By the end of the 1970s, women were no longer considered
‘on the shelf’ if they weren’t married by age 30, and many
delayed having children until they were established in their
chosen career. My children were born when I was in my late
20s and early 30s, but some friends and relatives delayed
their first child until their later 30s and even into their 40s.
When we wanted to buy our first house in 1976, I was working
and Howard was studying full-time. Back then it wasn’t usual
for banks to lend money on the basis of a woman’s salary,
but after the bank manager saw my bank passbooks showing
a record of saving from two months of age, we were granted
the home loan.
74 Maggie Diaz
Wedding (detail)
Colour negative
ca. 1970–1986
State Library of Victoria,
H2016.269/20a
74
98
99
