Cowan, Edith Dircksey (1861-1932), was an Australian social reformer and politician. In 1921, Cowan was elected to serve as a member of the Parliament of Western Australia. She became the first woman elected to an Australian parliament. 
Edith Dircksey Brown was born Aug. 2, 1861, in Glengarry, near Geraldton, Western Australia. Her mother died when she was seven, and she was sent to a boarding school run by the Cowan family of Perth. In 1879, Dircksey married the Australian civil servant James Cowan.
Edith Cowan was a founding member of the Karrakatta Club in 1894. The club was a social and literary circle in which women could share literature on women’s rights. Cowan became an advocate for education, woman suffrage (the right to vote), and limiting the availability of alcohol. Cowan was active in a number of other organizations. As a member of the Children’s Protection Society, she led efforts to pass the State Children Act in 1907. This act created the children’s court system. Cowan later served as a justice of the peace.
In 1921, Cowan ran for a seat in Western Australia’s Parliament, representing West Perth. As a member of Parliament, she worked to pass the Women’s Legal Status Bill. This law made it illegal to disqualify a person from any job based on sex. It passed in 1923. Cowan lost a reelection bid in 1924. She continued advocating for the health and wellbeing of women and children.
Cowan died June 9, 1932. In 1991, Edith Cowan University was founded in Perth. In 1995, Australia commemorated Cowan by adding her portrait to the $50 bill.
