Thomas Edward Spencer
Encyclopedia
Thomas Edward Spencer was an Australia
n building contractor and writer.
Born at Hoxton
Old Town London
, his parents were Daniel O'Brien, a cabinetmaker, and Ann, née Coulthard. Thomas came to Australia, visiting the Victorian goldfields in 1863 with a brother, but returned to England a year later and worked at his trade of stonemason. He dropped his father's surname by the time of his marriage to Jane Harriett Strew on 21 November 1869. Spencer was elected vice-president of the Stonemasons' Society of London, and assisted its president Henry Broadhurst
in the settlement of industrial disputes.
Spencer migrated to Sydney
, Australia in 1875 and became a successful builder and contractor, winning government contracts for work on Goulburn gaol, the University of Sydney
's physics laboratory and the sewerage system in Sydney. Spencer's wife died in 1880, leaving a son aged 7. On 6 April 1882 at Goulburn
, Spencer married Sarah Ann Christie.
Spencer began to contribute verse and prose sketches to The Bulletin
from 1891, and one set of verses How McDougall topped the Score, included in the Bulletin Reciter, published in 1901, became very popular. A collection of his work, How McDougall Topped the Score and other Verses and Sketches, was published in 1906. This was followed by Budgeree Ballads (1908), reprinted under the title "How Doherty Died" (1910), and four volumes of prose humorous sketches, The Surprising Adventures of Mrs Bridget McSweeney (1906), A Spring Cleaning and Other Stories (1908), The Haunted Shanty and other Stories (1910), and That Droll Lady (1911). Bindawalla: An Australian Story (1912), is in a more serious vein.
During his latter years, Spencer spent much of his time as an arbitrator in industrial disputes. From 1907 to 1911 he presided over many wages boards, and his experience and sense of justice enabled him to do valuable work. Spencer died at Sydney
on 6 May 1911, leaving a widow, their two sons and two daughters, along with a son from his first marriage. Spencer was buried in the Anglican section of Rookwood Cemetery
.
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 building contractor and writer.
Born at Hoxton
Hoxton
Hoxton is an area in the London Borough of Hackney, immediately north of the financial district of the City of London. The area of Hoxton is bordered by Regent's Canal on the north side, Wharf Road and City Road on the west, Old Street on the south, and Kingsland Road on the east.Hoxton is also a...
Old Town London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, his parents were Daniel O'Brien, a cabinetmaker, and Ann, née Coulthard. Thomas came to Australia, visiting the Victorian goldfields in 1863 with a brother, but returned to England a year later and worked at his trade of stonemason. He dropped his father's surname by the time of his marriage to Jane Harriett Strew on 21 November 1869. Spencer was elected vice-president of the Stonemasons' Society of London, and assisted its president Henry Broadhurst
Henry Broadhurst
Henry Broadhurst was a leading early British trade unionist and a Lib-Lab politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1885 and 1906....
in the settlement of industrial disputes.
Spencer migrated 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...
, Australia in 1875 and became a successful builder and contractor, winning government contracts for work on Goulburn gaol, the University of Sydney
University of Sydney
The University of Sydney is a public university located in Sydney, New South Wales. The main campus spreads across the suburbs of Camperdown and Darlington on the southwestern outskirts of the Sydney CBD. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and Oceania...
's physics laboratory and the sewerage system in Sydney. Spencer's wife died in 1880, leaving a son aged 7. On 6 April 1882 at Goulburn
Goulburn, New South Wales
Goulburn is a provincial city in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in Goulburn Mulwaree Council Local Government Area. It is located south-west of Sydney on the Hume Highway and above sea-level. On Census night 2006, Goulburn had a population of 20,127 people...
, Spencer married Sarah Ann Christie.
Spencer began to contribute verse and prose sketches to The Bulletin
The Bulletin
The Bulletin was an Australian weekly magazine that was published in Sydney from 1880 until January 2008. It was influential in Australian culture and politics from about 1890 until World War I, the period when it was identified with the "Bulletin school" of Australian literature. Its influence...
from 1891, and one set of verses How McDougall topped the Score, included in the Bulletin Reciter, published in 1901, became very popular. A collection of his work, How McDougall Topped the Score and other Verses and Sketches, was published in 1906. This was followed by Budgeree Ballads (1908), reprinted under the title "How Doherty Died" (1910), and four volumes of prose humorous sketches, The Surprising Adventures of Mrs Bridget McSweeney (1906), A Spring Cleaning and Other Stories (1908), The Haunted Shanty and other Stories (1910), and That Droll Lady (1911). Bindawalla: An Australian Story (1912), is in a more serious vein.
During his latter years, Spencer spent much of his time as an arbitrator in industrial disputes. From 1907 to 1911 he presided over many wages boards, and his experience and sense of justice enabled him to do valuable work. Spencer died at 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...
on 6 May 1911, leaving a widow, their two sons and two daughters, along with a son from his first marriage. Spencer was buried in the Anglican section of Rookwood Cemetery
Rookwood Cemetery
Rookwood Cemetery is the largest multicultural necropolis in the Southern Hemisphere, located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia...
.