Thomas Chirnside: Difference between revisions
mNo edit summary |
Vortex3427 (talk | contribs) No edit summary |
||
| (18 intermediate revisions by 12 users not shown) | |||
| Line 1: | Line 1: | ||
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2015}} |
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2015}} |
||
{{Use Australian English|date=December 2015}} |
{{Use Australian English|date=December 2015}} |
||
'''Thomas Chirnside''' (1815 – 1887) was an Australian [[pastoral farming|pastoralist]] who settled on much of what would become western [[Melbourne]]. |
|||
'''Thomas Chirnside''' (1815–1887) was a pastoralist |
|||
Thomas Chirnside was born in [[Berwickshire]], Scotland, the elder son of Robert Chirnside and [[Mary Fairs]]. His father was also a farmer. |
|||
==Background== |
|||
In 1839 Chirnside came from [[Liverpool]] on the ship {{ship||Bardaster|1833 ship|2}}. He arrived in [[Adelaide]] in January, and Sydney in March of that year. The drought of 1839 adversely affected the sheep he had bought near the [[Murrumbidgee River]], so he joined his younger brother Andrew in Melbourne. |
|||
In 1815, Thomas Chirnside was born to Robert and Mary ({{Nee|Fairs}}) Chirnside in the Scottish village of [[Cockburnspath]].<ref name="adb">{{cite book |last1=Hone |first1=J. Ann |title=Australian Dictionary of Biography |publisher=National Centre of Biography, Australian National University |chapter=Chirnside, Thomas (1815–1887) |access-date=2015-10-06 |chapter-url=http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/chirnside-thomas-3203/text4815}}</ref> In the 1820s and the 1830s, thousands of [[Scottish people|Scots]] were spurred on by poverty and famine to try and make a living in [[colonial Australia]]. Scottish [[Squatting (Australian history)|squatters]] and rural workers started farms.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2017 |title=Immigration History from Scotland to Victoria |url=https://origins.museumsvictoria.com.au/countries/scotland |access-date=September 23, 2024 |website=Origins |publisher=[[Museums Victoria]]}}</ref> In January 1839, Thomas Chirnside arrived in [[Adelaide]] with a [[Bible]] from his mother and several hundred [[Pound sterling|pounds]] from his father. Thomas had told his parents that he would only return home if he became a rich and respected man, before boarding the {{ship||Bardaster|1833 ship|2}} in [[Liverpool]].<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Hewitson |first=Jim |url=https://archive.org/details/faroffinsunlitpl0000hewi |title=Far Off in Sunlit Places: Stories of the Scots in Australia and New Zealand |publisher=[[Canongate Books]] |year=1998 |isbn=9780862417758 |location=Edinburgh |pages=56{{endash}}57 |url-access=registration}}</ref> |
|||
<ref name=adb>{{cite web|last1=Hone|first1=J. Ann|title=Chirnside, Thomas (1815–1887)|url=http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/chirnside-thomas-3203/text4815|website=Australian Dictionary of Biography|publisher=National Centre of Biography, Australian National University|accessdate=2015-10-06}}</ref> |
|||
Thomas was raising sheep on the [[Murrumbidgee River|Murrumbidgee]] by April, but drought forced him to abandon his flock. He joined his itinerant brother, Andrew, in [[Melbourne, Victoria|Melbourne]],<ref name="adb" /> and the two set about finding a good place to settle.<ref name=":0" />[[File:Aerial perspective of Thomas Chirnside School.jpg|thumb|An aerial view of the Thomas Chirnside School in Werribee, 2018]] |
|||
| ⚫ | In April 1842 the brothers established a station in the [[Grampians National Park|Grampians]], and that same year Thomas acquired a station on the [[Wannon River]], where he was one of the first to employ [[Indigenous Australians|Aboriginal People]]. In the mid-1840s the brothers acquired series of properties in the [[Western District (Victoria)|Western District]] of Victoria.<ref name=adb/> |
||
| ⚫ | In April 1842, the brothers established a station in the [[Grampians National Park|Grampians]], and that same year Thomas acquired a station on the [[Wannon River]], where he was one of the first to employ [[Indigenous Australians|Aboriginal People]]. In the mid-1840s the brothers acquired a series of properties in the [[Western District (Victoria)|Western District]] of Victoria.<ref name=adb/> |
||
| ⚫ | The elder Chirnside settled in [[Werribee, Victoria]], just before the [[Australian gold rushes|gold rushes]], eventually buying 80,000 acres (320 km²) of land. He built a substantial [[Bluestone# |
||
| ⚫ | The elder Chirnside settled in [[Werribee, Victoria]], just before the [[Australian gold rushes|gold rushes]], eventually buying 80,000 acres (320 km²) of land. He built a substantial [[Bluestone#Australia|bluestone]] house surrounded by a [[ha ha|ha ha wall]], and later, in the 1870s, the [[sandstone]] [[Italianate architecture|Italianate]] [[Werribee Park Mansion]]. |
||
| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | Thomas Chirnside was a member of the [[Philosophical Institute of Victoria]] |
||
| ⚫ | From 1857 to 1859, Thomas Chirnside was a member of the [[Philosophical Institute of Victoria]], and of the [[Royal Society of Victoria]] from 1860 to 1866. He was a strict [[Sabbatarian]], allowing no work on his properties on Sundays. He donated an acre (0.4 ha) of land and £100 for the first [[Presbyterian Church of Australia|Presbyterian Church]] in Werribee and, in February 1884, he laid the foundation stone of the second one. He and his brother, Andrew Spencer Chirnside, gave £1000 to [[Ormond College]] at the [[University of Melbourne]].<ref name=adb/> |
||
| ⚫ | |||
| ⚫ | In 1887, suffering from depression, Thomas Chirnside committed suicide with a shotgun in the garden of the Werribee Park Mansion.<ref>{{cite news |title=Sad Death of Mr. Thomas Chirnside |url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article7922547 |accessdate=2015-10-06 |work=The Argus |date=1887-06-27 |via=Trove}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=McCrory |first1=Phil |last2=Kelleher |first2=Tony |url=http://home.vicnet.net.au/~queenhs/chirnsides.html |title=The Chirnsides |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20031215084637/http://home.vicnet.net.au/~queenhs/chirnsides.html|archivedate=2003-12-15 |accessdate=2024-03-07 }}</ref> Andrew Spencer Chirnside inherited the property, but died three years later.<ref name=adb/> |
||
| ⚫ | |||
[[File:Aerial perspective of Thomas Chirnside School.jpg|thumb|left|An aerial perspective of his legacy in Werribee. Thomas Chirnside School. Melbourne 2018.]] |
|||
| ⚫ | |||
== References == |
== References == |
||
| Line 37: | Line 37: | ||
[[Category:1815 births]] |
[[Category:1815 births]] |
||
[[Category:1887 deaths]] |
[[Category:1887 deaths]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:Colony of New South Wales people]] |
||
[[Category: |
[[Category:19th-century Australian farmers]] |
||
[[Category:People from the Colony of Victoria]] |
|||
[[Category:Suicides by firearm in Victoria (state)]] |
|||
Latest revision as of 07:23, 23 September 2024
Thomas Chirnside (1815–1887) was a pastoralist
Background
[edit]In 1815, Thomas Chirnside was born to Robert and Mary (née Fairs) Chirnside in the Scottish village of Cockburnspath.[1] In the 1820s and the 1830s, thousands of Scots were spurred on by poverty and famine to try and make a living in colonial Australia. Scottish squatters and rural workers started farms.[2] In January 1839, Thomas Chirnside arrived in Adelaide with a Bible from his mother and several hundred pounds from his father. Thomas had told his parents that he would only return home if he became a rich and respected man, before boarding the Bardaster in Liverpool.[3]
Thomas was raising sheep on the Murrumbidgee by April, but drought forced him to abandon his flock. He joined his itinerant brother, Andrew, in Melbourne,[1] and the two set about finding a good place to settle.[3]
In April 1842, the brothers established a station in the Grampians, and that same year Thomas acquired a station on the Wannon River, where he was one of the first to employ Aboriginal People. In the mid-1840s the brothers acquired a series of properties in the Western District of Victoria.[1]
The elder Chirnside settled in Werribee, Victoria, just before the gold rushes, eventually buying 80,000 acres (320 km²) of land. He built a substantial bluestone house surrounded by a ha ha wall, and later, in the 1870s, the sandstone Italianate Werribee Park Mansion.
On 2 September 1853, he purchased, through a government grant, Section 14, in the Parish of Cut Paw Paw, County of Bourke. The allotment was 89 acres (36 ha), which is now the Melbourne suburb of Kingsville.
From 1857 to 1859, Thomas Chirnside was a member of the Philosophical Institute of Victoria, and of the Royal Society of Victoria from 1860 to 1866. He was a strict Sabbatarian, allowing no work on his properties on Sundays. He donated an acre (0.4 ha) of land and £100 for the first Presbyterian Church in Werribee and, in February 1884, he laid the foundation stone of the second one. He and his brother, Andrew Spencer Chirnside, gave £1000 to Ormond College at the University of Melbourne.[1]
In 1887, suffering from depression, Thomas Chirnside committed suicide with a shotgun in the garden of the Werribee Park Mansion.[4][5] Andrew Spencer Chirnside inherited the property, but died three years later.[1]
A primary school in Werribee has been named in Thomas's honour.[6]
References
[edit]- ^ a b c d e Hone, J. Ann. "Chirnside, Thomas (1815–1887)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 6 October 2015.
- ^ "Immigration History from Scotland to Victoria". Origins. Museums Victoria. 2017. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
- ^ a b Hewitson, Jim (1998). Far Off in Sunlit Places: Stories of the Scots in Australia and New Zealand. Edinburgh: Canongate Books. pp. 56–57. ISBN 9780862417758.
- ^ "Sad Death of Mr. Thomas Chirnside". The Argus. 27 June 1887. Retrieved 6 October 2015 – via Trove.
- ^ McCrory, Phil; Kelleher, Tony. "The Chirnsides". Archived from the original on 15 December 2003. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
- ^ "Thomas Chirnside Primary School". thomaschirnsideps.vic.edu.au/. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
Further reading
[edit]Hone, J. Ann (1969). "Chirnside, Thomas (1815–1887)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 19 September 2014. Wool Past the Winning Post by Heather B Ronald A History of the Chirnside Family published by Landvale Enterprises 1978
