Sidney William Jackson
Encyclopedia
Sidney William Jackson was an Australia
n naturalist
and field ornithologist
with a special interest in oology
, who was also a skilled photographer
and taxidermist
.
, Queensland
, and educated at Toowoomba Grammar School
and in Grafton, New South Wales
. From his youth he developed an interest in bird
s and in collecting their eggs. Based in Grafton, for many years he worked as a commercial traveller, giving him the opportunity to build up a large collection of birds' eggs. Although his field activities were mainly focussed on bird and egg specimens, he also collected land snail
s and botanical
specimens. He was a skillful tree-climber and developed, with the help of his brother Frank, techniques for climbing trees, using leg-spikes and rope-ladders, as aids to egg-collecting.
Jackson contributed several papers to the RAOU
journal
The Emu
. He was a diligent diarist, correspondent, photographer and talented sketcher, whose diaries, as well as much of his correspondence, photographic negatives and drawings, eventually found their way to the National Library of Australia
in Canberra
. He also authored a book, Egg Collecting and Bird Life of Australia
, a combined autobiographical work and oological catalogue, illustrated with his own photographs, which was published in 1907.
In 1906 Jackson had sold his collection of nearly 2000 eggs, representing over 500 species of Australian birds, to H.L. White
, a wealthy pastoralist based at Scone, New South Wales
who was a keen amateur ornithologist and oologist. In 1907 White then employed Jackson as curator of his collection of eggs and bird skins, as well as a collector of further specimens. During this period Jackson travelled extensively throughout Australia on quests to obtain specimens and eggs of various birds. Following White’s death in 1927, Jackson moved to Sydney
where he wrote popular illustrated articles on natural history for newspapers and magazines, mainly the Sydney Morning Herald and the World's News, using the pen name
‘Ajax’.
Ornithological historian Alec Chisholm
, in an article about Jackson’s diaries in The Emu, described Jackson, whom he knew personally, as follows:
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n naturalist
Natural history
Natural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
and field ornithologist
Ornithology
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the study of birds. Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and the aesthetic appeal of birds...
with a special interest in oology
Oology
Oology is a branch of ornithology studying bird eggs, nests and breeding behavior. Oology can also refer to the hobby of collecting wild birds' eggs, sometimes called birdnesting or egging, which is now illegal in many jurisdictions.-As a science:Oology became increasingly popular in Britain and...
, who was also a skilled photographer
Photography
Photography is the art, science and practice of creating durable images by recording light or other electromagnetic radiation, either electronically by means of an image sensor or chemically by means of a light-sensitive material such as photographic film...
and taxidermist
Taxidermy
Taxidermy is the act of mounting or reproducing dead animals for display or for other sources of study. Taxidermy can be done on all vertebrate species of animals, including mammals, birds, fish, reptiles, and amphibians...
.
History
Jackson was born in BrisbaneBrisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
, Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, and educated at Toowoomba Grammar School
Toowoomba Grammar School
Toowoomba Grammar School is an independent, non-denominational, day and boarding grammar school for boys, in Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia....
and in Grafton, New South Wales
Grafton, New South Wales
The city of Grafton is the commercial hub of the Clarence River Valley. Established in 1851, Grafton features many historic buildings and tree-lined streets. Located approximately 630 kilometres north of Sydney and 340 km south of Brisbane, Grafton and the Clarence Valley can be reached...
. From his youth he developed an interest in bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
s and in collecting their eggs. Based in Grafton, for many years he worked as a commercial traveller, giving him the opportunity to build up a large collection of birds' eggs. Although his field activities were mainly focussed on bird and egg specimens, he also collected land snail
Snail
Snail is a common name applied to most of the members of the molluscan class Gastropoda that have coiled shells in the adult stage. When the word is used in its most general sense, it includes sea snails, land snails and freshwater snails. The word snail without any qualifier is however more often...
s and botanical
Botany
Botany, plant science, or plant biology is a branch of biology that involves the scientific study of plant life. Traditionally, botany also included the study of fungi, algae and viruses...
specimens. He was a skillful tree-climber and developed, with the help of his brother Frank, techniques for climbing trees, using leg-spikes and rope-ladders, as aids to egg-collecting.
Jackson contributed several papers to the RAOU
Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union
The Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union, also known as Birds Australia, was founded in 1901 to promote the study and conservation of the native bird species of Australia and adjacent regions. This makes it Australia's oldest national birding association. It is also Australia's largest...
journal
Scientific journal
In academic publishing, a scientific journal is a periodical publication intended to further the progress of science, usually by reporting new research. There are thousands of scientific journals in publication, and many more have been published at various points in the past...
The Emu
Emu (journal)
Emu, subtitled Austral Ornithology, is the peer-reviewed scientific journal of the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union. The journal was established in 1901 and is the oldest ornithological journal published in Australia...
. He was a diligent diarist, correspondent, photographer and talented sketcher, whose diaries, as well as much of his correspondence, photographic negatives and drawings, eventually found their way to the National Library of Australia
National Library of Australia
The National Library of Australia is the largest reference library of Australia, responsible under the terms of the National Library Act for "maintaining and developing a national collection of library material, including a comprehensive collection of library material relating to Australia and the...
in Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
. He also authored a book, Egg Collecting and Bird Life of Australia
Egg Collecting and Bird Life of Australia
Egg collecting and bird life of Australia is a quarto-sized book authored and published in 1907 by field ornithologist and oologist Sidney William Jackson. The full title text reads: "Egg collecting and bird life of Australia...
, a combined autobiographical work and oological catalogue, illustrated with his own photographs, which was published in 1907.
In 1906 Jackson had sold his collection of nearly 2000 eggs, representing over 500 species of Australian birds, to H.L. White
Henry Luke White
Henry Luke White was a wealthy grazier, and keen amateur ornithologist and oologist of Scone, New South Wales, Australia. He was a member of the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union to which he was a generous benefactor...
, a wealthy pastoralist based at Scone, New South Wales
Scone, New South Wales
Scone is a town in the Upper Hunter Shire in the Hunter Valley region of New South Wales, Australia. At the 2006 census, Scone had a population of 4,624 people. It is located on the New England Highway north of Muswellbrook about 270 kilometres north of Sydney, and is part of the Hunter and Upper...
who was a keen amateur ornithologist and oologist. In 1907 White then employed Jackson as curator of his collection of eggs and bird skins, as well as a collector of further specimens. During this period Jackson travelled extensively throughout Australia on quests to obtain specimens and eggs of various birds. Following White’s death in 1927, Jackson moved to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
where he wrote popular illustrated articles on natural history for newspapers and magazines, mainly the Sydney Morning Herald and the World's News, using the pen name
Pen name
A pen name, nom de plume, or literary double, is a pseudonym adopted by an author. A pen name may be used to make the author's name more distinctive, to disguise his or her gender, to distance an author from some or all of his or her works, to protect the author from retribution for his or her...
‘Ajax’.
Ornithological historian Alec Chisholm
Alexander Hugh Chisholm
Alexander Hugh Chisholm was a noted Australian journalist, newspaper editor, author and amateur ornithologist. He was a member of the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union , President of the RAOU 1939-1940, and Editor of its journal the Emu 1926-1928. He was elected a Fellow of the RAOU in 1941...
, in an article about Jackson’s diaries in The Emu, described Jackson, whom he knew personally, as follows:
”Inevitably, the diaries and correspondence reflect the character of their author. Jackson was an odd mixture. A keen observer and most diligent worker, he was extremely temperamental – apt to be completely downcast at one moment and thoroughly joyful soon afterwards. In some respects he was entirely humourless, and yet he could be highly entertaining when giving performances of ventriloquism and mimicry, added to which he had a child-like fondness for those trivial gadgets (such as a piece of tin shaped and painted to resemble spilt ink) that alarm or embarrass unwary people. Practical and self-reliant in the bush, he was just the reverse in matters of business, and so he was frequently in trouble, financial and otherwise. The one factor that sustained him during tribulations, and also caused him to exaggerate his own achievements, was a strong strain of egotism. This failing, if occasionally provoking, was quite naive in his case, and so was tolerated by all who knew him well – H.L. White included – though they regretted to see it leading him, at times, into childish absurdities. Inevitably, the same weakness is manifest in every diary and almost every letter of the collection now at Canberra, and in some instances the remarks are distinctly quaint.
“The fact appears to be that Jackson, through experiencing much solitude in the bush, had become lonely and introspective, and so took to indulging in self-pity and self-congratulation. Like various other bush-wanderers before his time, he ‘talked’ to his diaries, and, even though we may smile at certain comments, it has to be conceded that such highly personal touches make the entries more ‘human’ than matter-of-fact narratives.”
Further reading
- White, Judy. (1991). Sidney William Jackson. Bush Photographer, 1873 to 1946. Seven Press: Scone, NSW. ISBN 0959396640