Thomas Alexander Browne facts for kids
Thomas Alexander Browne (born Brown, 6 August 1826 – 11 March 1915) was an Australian writer. He wrote many of his books using the pen name Rolf Boldrewood. He is most famous for his 1882 novel Robbery Under Arms, which is about bushrangers. Bushrangers were outlaws in the Australian bush, similar to cowboys or bandits.
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Life Story of Thomas Browne
Thomas Browne was born in London, England, in 1826. He was the oldest child of Captain Sylvester John Brown, who was a ship captain. His mother, Elizabeth, was his first fan and helped him with his writing. Thomas added the letter 'e' to his last name in the 1860s.
Moving to Australia
In 1831, when Thomas was five years old, his family moved to Sydney, Australia. His father's ship, a type of sailing ship called a barque, had brought convicts to Hobart. After that, the family decided to stay in Australia. Thomas's father started a whaling business and built a large house called Enmore. This house gave its name to a suburb in Sydney.
Thomas went to school in Sydney, first at W. T. Cape's school and then at Sydney College. He was good friends with the son of a government official and spent holidays at their beautiful home in Sydney.
Life as a Landowner
In 1839, Thomas's father moved to Melbourne. Thomas stayed at Sydney College until 1841. Then he continued his studies in Melbourne. In 1843, even though he was only 17, Thomas started his own farm near Port Fairy. He called his property Squattlesamere and lived there until 1856.
He visited England in 1860. Later, he managed other large properties, or "runs," in Australia. These included Murrabit near Swan Hill and Bundidgaree station near Narrandera. However, tough weather in 1866 and 1868 made it hard to keep farming. So, in 1871, Thomas stopped being a landowner.
Working for the Government
After farming, Thomas Browne became a police magistrate and a gold commissioner. A police magistrate was like a judge who handled local legal cases. A gold commissioner was a government official who managed rules and disputes on goldfields.
In 1871, he was sent to Gulgong, which was a very busy goldfield in New South Wales. At first, some people criticized him because he didn't know much about mining rules. A local newspaper even accused him of being unfair. But Thomas proved the accusations were false. He even asked the judge to be kind to the newspaper editor who had accused him. This made the miners like him a lot.
Thomas continued to work as a magistrate and mining warden in different towns, including Dubbo, Armidale, and Albury. He retired in 1895 and moved to Melbourne. He passed away in Melbourne on 11 March 1915 and was buried in Brighton Cemetery.
Writing Career
Thomas Browne spent about 25 years as a landowner and another 25 years working for the government. But his writing career lasted for over 40 years!
Early Writings
In 1865, after a horse riding accident, he started writing. He wrote articles about life in the Australian countryside for a magazine called Cornhill Magazine. He also started writing stories that were published in parts, called "serial stories," in Australian newspapers. One of these stories, Ups and Downs: a Story of Australian Life, was published as a book in London in 1878. It was later re-released as The Squatter's Dream in 1890.
Becoming Rolf Boldrewood
In 1884, his book Old Melbourne Memories was published. It was a collection of his memories from the 1840s. On the cover, it said "by Rolf Boldrewood." This was the first time he used his famous pen name. The name "Boldrewood" came from a poem called Marmion by his favorite writer, Sir Walter Scott.
His Most Famous Book: Robbery Under Arms
In 1888, his most famous novel, Robbery Under Arms, was published. It quickly became very popular. The story is told by a character named Dick Marston, who is waiting to be executed for crimes he committed as a bushranger. He tells the exciting story of his life, his loves, and his adventures with a famous bushranger called Captain Starlight.
Some of the events in the book are based on real stories of bushrangers like Daniel Morgan, Ben Hall, and Frank Gardiner. Robbery Under Arms has been popular ever since it was first published. It has been made into movies several times (in 1907, 1920, and 1957) and even a television series in 1985. It has also been read on the radio in Australia and Britain.
Awards and Recognition
To honor Thomas Alexander Browne, the Rolf Boldrewood Literary Awards were given out every year from 2006 to 2017 by the Macquarie Regional Library. These awards celebrated new writers.
Family Life
Thomas Browne married Margaret Maria Riley in 1860. Margaret was also a writer; she wrote a book called The Flower Garden in Australia in 1893. They had two sons and five daughters. One of their daughters, who wrote under the name "Rose Boldrewood," published a novel called The Complications at Collaroi in 1911.
His brother, Sylvester John Browne, was also involved in mining as a mine manager.
