Reclaiming Kate Kelly – the story of Ned’s little sister
An artist became so obsessed with the story of the famed bushranger’s sibling, she was inspired to write her biography – and in the process discovered an unusual family connection to her.
Rebecca Wilson began painting Kate Kelly before she wrote a biography about the gang member. Wolter Peeters
Igrew up hearing stories about Ned Kelly’s little sister, Kate. She had lived the last years of her life in the Forbes region of NSW, where I was raised. For the past decade I have researched the details of her life and she has been the subject of my art and my new biography of her.
When I began my research, I quickly realised that if the Australian press and public had not been obsessed with Kate Kelly and her efforts riding as a decoy and messenger from 1878 to 1880, when the Kelly Gang was on the run, we would not know very much about her at all.
