Marion Knowles

Marion Miller Knowles (1865–1949) was an Australian journalist, poet, writer and Catholic charity worker.
Early life and education.
Born on 8 August 1865 in the Victorian gold-mining town of Woods Point, Knowles was the daughter of James and Anne (née Bowen) Miller. Her father was a storekeeper.
Career.
She was a journalist for the Melbourne "Advocate" for 30 years and conducted the Women’s and Children’s pages until her retirement in 1927. She also was a charity worker for the Melbourne Catholic Orphanage and the Wattle Day appeals.
In 1893 her first poems appeared in "The Australasian" under the name "John Desmond".
In 1931 she received a pension from the Commonwealth Literary Fund.
Knowles was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 1938 Birthday Honours, being recognised as "a well-known Australian writer of books for girls".
Personal.
Knowles married Joseph Knowles at St Patrick’s Cathedral on 19 September 1901. Her husband died on 18 June 1918 at a private hospital in Melbourne, aged 60.
Knowles died on 16 September 1949 and was survived by her two sons, Adrian and William. Following a requiem mass at the Sacred Heart Church in Kew, she was buried in Brighton Cemetery.