My Profile

Sarah Luke is a freelance historian and a History/English secondary school teacher. Her research interests rest in nineteenth/early twentieth century institutional histories, with a particular focus on schools, crime, mental health, and biography. A teacher for many years, Sarah is an experienced school programmer besides being a skilled archival researcher. She has published two books: ‘Callan Park, Hospital for the Insane’ (2018) which was shortlisted for the 2019 NSW Premier’s History Awards (NSW Community and Regional History Prize), and ‘Like a Wicked Noah’s Ark: The Nautical School Ships Vernon & Sobraon’ (2020). Besides these she has also had articles published by the Australian National Maritime Museum, the Royal Australian Historical Society, ‘Traces’ Magazine, ‘Newswrite’, and other local historical groups. Sarah is an enthusiastic speaker at community events, and has presented her research at NSW History Week, at a range of local history society meetings, at various bookshops, and for the Society of Women Writers; she is also a tour guide for The Friends of Callan Park. Sarah is currently a PhD candidate at Macquarie University.