Meet Dorothy: the meaning behind our newest building's name

The building that stands in the north-eastern corner of our Parkville campus is Trinity's newest building (officially opened in February 2020 in what was, unbeknownst to us at the time, our last hurrah before COVID struck).

The building has since been named the Dorothy Jane Ryall building, or 'Dorothy' for short.

A student room in the Dorothy building

A student room in the Dorothy building

But ... who is Dorothy?

Dorothy Jane Ryall (née Newton) was a matron (equivalent to a nurse and pastoral care adviser) at Trinity College from the late 1920s until her death in 1942 at the age of 54. One of the buildings that previously stood on the site of the current ‘Dorothy’ was referred to by the same name in recognition of Ryall.

_{Trinity's building known as 'Dorothy' after Dorothy Jane Ryall}

Dorothy was born in Malvern, Victoria, in 1887. She was a talented musician and was accepted as a student at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music. She later trained as a nurse and, in 1915, enlisted as a staff nurse in the Australian Army Nursing Service. She worked in several nursing roles overseas during World War I before returning to Australia in 1919.

In 1921, she married Warrant Officer Lewis Henry Ryall, who died six years later from war injury complications. After a period living in Queensland, Dorothy returned to Melbourne with her son and took up a matron position at Trinity College.

As one student wrote in the October 1929 edition of the Fleur de Lys:

Mrs Ryall at once settled down to her new life and we must congratulate her on the capable manner in which she is looking after us. We thank her for the care with which she keeps brightening flowers in the common room and hope that her stay with us will be a long and happy one.

Dorothy was also credited for her leadership skills. Following the outbreak of World War II, which led to a decline in student numbers and difficulty securing suitable staff at the College, a passage in the October 1941 edition of the Fleur de Lys read:

There has, since the war began, been very great difficulty in obtaining the Domestic Staff. Mrs Ryall is to be congratulated on the way she has kept that side of the College running smoothly.

She has had almost unsurmountable difficulties to overcome, but regardless of this, the usual good quality of College domestic service has been maintained.

The new Junior Common Room in Dorothy

The new Junior Common Room in Dorothy

The choice of ‘Dorothy’ as the name for the new building reflects the important, and often unrecognised, service that many people like Dorothy Jane Ryall provided to the College over many years, and continue to do so.