William Hodgkinson
Encyclopedia
William Oswald Hodgkinson (1835–1900) was an Australia
n explorer, journalist, gold miner, and politician.
, Warwick
, England
. His father, also named William Oswald Hodgkinson, was a civil engineer and his mother was Harriet Hodgkinson, née Brown.
Hodgkinson was educated at Birmingham Grammar School and by 1851 was a midshipman in the merchant marine. He soon emigrated to Australia, working for the government in Victoria on the Tarnagulla
and Forest Creek goldfields. After a short-lived return to England he went to work as a journalist in Australia, starting in 1859, and in 1860 joined the Burke and Wills expedition
. Hodgkinson left the expedition before it ended in disaster at Cooper Creek
, and went on to join first Alfred William Howitt
’s Victorian Relief Expedition, which aimed to establish the fate of the Burke and Wills expedition, and then in 1861 the John McKinlay
relief party, on which he served as second-in-command.
Hodgkinson next continued his journalistic career, working as editor for Rockhampton
's Morning Bulletin before founding Mackay
's first newspaper, the Mercury, in 1866. Returning to the gold mining business in 1868, he worked in the Ravensfield and Cape goldfields for the next two years. In 1870, at the Etheridge goldfield, he became a mining warden and police magistrate, two posts that propelled him onto the Queensland Legislative Assembly
representing the electoral district of Burke in 1874. In 1875 he resigned his seat in order to head up a government expedition that was to report on the potential of some unexplored land mining, pastoral, and agricultural purposes.
This expedition, focused on the area between Etheridge and Cloncurry
goldfields, explored the Diamantina
, Mulligan, and Herbert
river systems and headed north through Normanton
and up the Cloncurry and Flinders
Rivers, concluding at Brisbane.
Throughout the late 1870s and 1880s Hodgkinson became more involved in politics as mining warden and in 1888 was requested to stand for six electorates. He stood for Burke and was successful, and in 1890 he became the Minister of Mines and Public Instruction. In 1893, he was defeated by Labor candidate John Hoolan
and lost his seat.
Hodgkinson spent much of the 1890s in Sydney
and Western Australia, working as an expert in mining. He died of influenza on 23 July 1900.
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 explorer, journalist, gold miner, and politician.
Biography
William Oswald Hodgkinson was born on 21 March 1835 in HandsworthHandsworth, West Midlands
Handsworth is an inner city area of Birmingham in the West Midlands, England. The Local Government Act 1894 divided the ancient Staffordshire parish of Handsworth into two urban districts: Handsworth and Perry Barr. Handsworth was annexed to the county borough of Birmingham in Warwickshire in 1911...
, Warwick
Warwick
Warwick is the county town of Warwickshire, England. The town lies upon the River Avon, south of Coventry and just west of Leamington Spa and Whitnash with which it is conjoined. As of the 2001 United Kingdom census, it had a population of 23,350...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. His father, also named William Oswald Hodgkinson, was a civil engineer and his mother was Harriet Hodgkinson, née Brown.
Hodgkinson was educated at Birmingham Grammar School and by 1851 was a midshipman in the merchant marine. He soon emigrated to Australia, working for the government in Victoria on the Tarnagulla
Tarnagulla, Victoria
Tarnagulla is a gold mining town in central Victoria, Australia. The town is in the Shire of Loddon Local Government Area, north west of the state capital, Melbourne. At the 2006 census, Tarnagulla had a population of 153.-History:...
and Forest Creek goldfields. After a short-lived return to England he went to work as a journalist in Australia, starting in 1859, and in 1860 joined the Burke and Wills expedition
Burke and Wills expedition
In 1860–61, Robert O'Hara Burke and William John Wills led an expedition of 19 men with the intention of crossing Australia from Melbourne in the south to the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north, a distance of around 3,250 kilometres...
. Hodgkinson left the expedition before it ended in disaster at Cooper Creek
Cooper Creek
Cooper Creek is one of the most famous and yet least visited rivers in Australia. It is sometimes known as the Barcoo River from one of its tributaries and is one of three major Queensland river systems that flow into the Lake Eyre Basin...
, and went on to join first Alfred William Howitt
Alfred William Howitt
Alfred William Howitt was an Australian anthropologist and naturalist.-Background:Howitt was born in Nottingham, England, the son of authors William Howitt and Mary Botham. He came to the Victorian gold fields in 1852 with his father and brother to visit his uncle, Godfrey Howitt...
’s Victorian Relief Expedition, which aimed to establish the fate of the Burke and Wills expedition, and then in 1861 the John McKinlay
John McKinlay
John McKinlay , was a grazier and explorer of Australia and leader of the search party for the Burke and Wills expedition .-Early life:...
relief party, on which he served as second-in-command.
Hodgkinson next continued his journalistic career, working as editor for Rockhampton
Rockhampton, Queensland
Rockhampton is a city and local government area in Queensland, Australia. The city lies on the Fitzroy River, approximately from the river mouth, and some north of the state capital, Brisbane....
's Morning Bulletin before founding Mackay
Mackay, Queensland
Mackay is a city on the eastern coast of Queensland, Australia, about north of Brisbane, on the Pioneer River. Mackay is nicknamed the sugar capital of Australia because its region produces more than a third of Australia's cane sugar....
's first newspaper, the Mercury, in 1866. Returning to the gold mining business in 1868, he worked in the Ravensfield and Cape goldfields for the next two years. In 1870, at the Etheridge goldfield, he became a mining warden and police magistrate, two posts that propelled him onto the Queensland Legislative Assembly
Queensland Legislative Assembly
The Queensland Legislative Assembly is the unicameral chamber of the Parliament of Queensland. Elections are held approximately once every three years. Voting is by the Optional Preferential Voting form of the Alternative Vote system...
representing the electoral district of Burke in 1874. In 1875 he resigned his seat in order to head up a government expedition that was to report on the potential of some unexplored land mining, pastoral, and agricultural purposes.
This expedition, focused on the area between Etheridge and Cloncurry
Cloncurry, Queensland
-Notable residents:*Writer Alexis Wright grew up in Cloncurry.*Association Footballer Kasey Wehrman was born in Cloncurry . He went on to play domestically and in Scandinavia. His achievements include winning a NSL Championship in 1996-1997 with the Brisbane Strikers and being capped several times...
goldfields, explored the Diamantina
Diamantina River
The Diamantina River is a river in south west Queensland and the far north of South Australia. Rising north-west of Longreach in the Swords Range, it flows in a south-westerly direction through central Queensland and the Channel Country to form the Warburton River at its confluence with the...
, Mulligan, and Herbert
Herbert River
The Herbert River is a river located in Far North Queensland, Australia. The southernmost of Queensland's wet tropics river systems, it is named after Robert George Wyndham Herbert , the first Premier of Queensland...
river systems and headed north through Normanton
Normanton, Queensland
-External links:****...
and up the Cloncurry and Flinders
Flinders River
The Flinders River is the longest river in Queensland, Australia at about . The river rises in the Burra Range, part of the Great Dividing Range, 110 km northeast of Hughenden and flows in a westerly direction past Hughenden, Richmond and Julia Creek then northwest to the Gulf of Carpentaria...
Rivers, concluding at Brisbane.
Throughout the late 1870s and 1880s Hodgkinson became more involved in politics as mining warden and in 1888 was requested to stand for six electorates. He stood for Burke and was successful, and in 1890 he became the Minister of Mines and Public Instruction. In 1893, he was defeated by Labor candidate John Hoolan
John Hoolan
John Hoolan was an Australian politician. He was the Labor member for Burke in the Queensland Legislative Assembly from 1890 to 1894 and from 1896 to 1899....
and lost his seat.
Hodgkinson spent much of the 1890s in 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...
and Western Australia, working as an expert in mining. He died of influenza on 23 July 1900.