wood-carver and needleworker, was born in Hobart Town, Tasmania, on 19 February 1861, daughter of William Mason and Mary Ann, née Squire. In 1881, aged twenty-six, she married the brewer Thomas Stannus Todd who by 1892 was head brewer and manager of the Cascade Brewery, South Hobart. By the early 1900s her children were growing up and Sarah Todd became interested in wood-carving. She studied at the Hobart Technical College, probably under W. Russell, and exhibited successfully in the 1907 Exhibition of Women’s Work at Melbourne. Thomas Todd and their three daughters shared Sarah’s interest in wood-carving.
They lived in the Brewery Manager’s house until Thomas died; Sarah spent her most productive years as a wood-carver there. After moving to Bellerive on the eastern shore, her advancing years forced her to give up wood-carving in favour of embroidery, needlework and rug-making. Her three daughters all became proficient in their mother’s skills, their needlework and carving being represented, along with their mother’s, in churches and private houses around Hobart.
Several good examples of Sarah Todd’s work are held by the Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery. Like other wood-carvers of the period, the inspiration for much of her work came from English Arts and Crafts illustrated journals.
Sarah Todd is remembered by her family and friends as being tall, gracious and upright, even in old age. Her manner was natural and entertaining. She was also an active and creative gardener. She died at the great age of ninety-eight, on 11 July 1959.
- Writers:
- Mercer, Peter
Note: Heritage biography.
- Date written:
- 1995
- Last updated:
- 2011
