Kirk is thought to have been born in
London in 1855. Her Quaker parents were Maria Elizabeth and Alfred Peter Sutton. Her father worked in retail and so did her husband (1878). In time her husband, Frank Kirk, made boots and she was involved in helping in missions in London. and in 1887 she and Rev. Philip Moses were key figures in the creation of the
Woman's Christian Temperance Union of Victoria. Four years later there were 57 branches of members sporting white ribbons pins as part of the organisation across the colony of Victoria. She co-founded the
National Council of Women of Victoria to campaign for equal pay, education for women and the rights of children. In 1892 the WCTU in Victoria published the "White Ribbon Signal". Kirk was its editor. In 1894 the
Victorian Women's Franchise League was created as an offshoot of the WCTU temperance union and Kirk was on the founding committee. In 1897 she attended temperance conventions in the UK and America representing the organisation in Victoria. ==Death and legacy==