Servants Depots in Colonial South Australia

Marie Steiner's Servants Depots in Colonial South Australia is a fascinating account of a little-known period in South Australian history. In 1855 the colony of South Australia experienced 'excessive female immigration', with large numbers of single females arriving from the British Isles to work as servants. When an economic downturn led to a shortage of domestic help positions, the Colonial Government was moved to establish servants' depots around South Australia to house them. The book details the day-to-day running of these depots, and reveals much about the attitudes towards women in colonial South Australia.