Anne Philomena O'Brien

Anne Philomena O'Brien
Born	1954 (age 69–70) Glenelg, South Australia, Australia
Nationality	Australian
Occupation	Historian
Notable work	God's Willing Workers

Anne Philomena O'Brien (born 1954) is an Australian historian and author who is a professor at the University of New South Wales.

Early life

Anne Philomena O'Brien was born in 1954 in Glenelg, South Australia, Australia. Her parents were Paul and Mary (Mollie) O'Brien. Anne was their fifth and youngest daughter.

Education

In 1975, O'Brien earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from the University of Adelaide, graduating with honours. She taught part-time for a year at Flinders University in South Australia, before enrolling in a PhD program at the University of Sydney. She completed her PhD in 1982.

Career

From 1982 to 1985, she taught at Santa Sabina College.

In 1987, O'Brien began lecturing in history at the University of New South Wales. She became an associate professor in 2007, and later became a full professor in the School of Humanities and Languages.

Books

In 1988, O'Brien published her first book, Poverty's Prison. The Poor in New South Wales 1880–1918, which was based on her PhD research. Her second book, God's Willing Workers: Women and Religion in Australia, was published in 2005. She published Philanthropy and Settler Colonialism in 2014. O'Brien is married and has two children.