Gordon Barton
Encyclopedia
Gordon Page Barton was a quixotic Australia
n businessman and political activist.
He was born in Surabaya
, Java
, Dutch East Indies
(now Indonesia
) of a Dutch mother and Australian father. He showed his intelligence and originality early, at Sydney University, where he found by careful study of the handbook of course requirements he could select a particular group of subjects that would qualify him for three degrees simultaneously, in the time normally taken for one. The university awarded him the degrees but then changed the rules so that it couldn't happen again.
While still at university Barton started Interstate Parcel Express Company (IPEC), which was the core of his business. In 1966 he used some of his wealth to form the Liberal Reform Group
, a splinter group of Liberals disenchanted with the Liberal Party's support for the Vietnam War
; this became the Australian Reform Movement and then the Australia Party
, the precursor of the Democrats
.
In 1967 he formed the company Tjuringa Securities which was the pioneer Australian corporate raider. Tjuringa took over Federal Hotels (which built the Hobart Casino, the first legal casino in Australia) and the Angus and Robertson bookshops and publishing business which were asset stripped. He also set up two newspapers, the Sunday Observer and the Sunday Review. The second was merged with the purchased "Nation" publication to form the Nation Review
.
He was married to Yvonne Hand, who died in 1970. They had two children, Cindy and Geoffrey.
He died in Spain
.
Following the death of his first wife, from 1977 Barton, until their separation and estrangement, lived in a defacto relationship with Mary Ellen Ayrton, and her daughter Kate, raising their three children together as a family in Australia and Europe.
The Sunday Observer owned by Barton in the 1960s was short-lived and had nothing to do with the Sunday Observer, UK.
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 businessman and political activist.
He was born in Surabaya
Surabaya
Surabaya is Indonesia's second-largest city with a population of over 2.7 million , and the capital of the province of East Java...
, Java
Java
Java is an island of Indonesia. With a population of 135 million , it is the world's most populous island, and one of the most densely populated regions in the world. It is home to 60% of Indonesia's population. The Indonesian capital city, Jakarta, is in west Java...
, Dutch East Indies
Dutch East Indies
The Dutch East Indies was a Dutch colony that became modern Indonesia following World War II. It was formed from the nationalised colonies of the Dutch East India Company, which came under the administration of the Netherlands government in 1800....
(now Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
) of a Dutch mother and Australian father. He showed his intelligence and originality early, at Sydney University, where he found by careful study of the handbook of course requirements he could select a particular group of subjects that would qualify him for three degrees simultaneously, in the time normally taken for one. The university awarded him the degrees but then changed the rules so that it couldn't happen again.
While still at university Barton started Interstate Parcel Express Company (IPEC), which was the core of his business. In 1966 he used some of his wealth to form the Liberal Reform Group
Liberal Reform Group
The Liberal Reform Group, later known as the Australian Reform Movement, was a minor Australian political party and predecessor to the Australia Party, which in turn was a predecessor to the Australian Democrats...
, a splinter group of Liberals disenchanted with the Liberal Party's support for the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
; this became the Australian Reform Movement and then the Australia Party
Australia Party
The Australia Party was the name of a minor political party in Australia ....
, the precursor of the Democrats
Australian Democrats
The Australian Democrats is an Australian political party espousing a socially liberal ideology. It was formed in 1977, by a merger of the Australia Party and the New LM, after principals of those minor parties secured the commitment of former Liberal minister Don Chipp, as a high profile leader...
.
In 1967 he formed the company Tjuringa Securities which was the pioneer Australian corporate raider. Tjuringa took over Federal Hotels (which built the Hobart Casino, the first legal casino in Australia) and the Angus and Robertson bookshops and publishing business which were asset stripped. He also set up two newspapers, the Sunday Observer and the Sunday Review. The second was merged with the purchased "Nation" publication to form the Nation Review
Nation Review
Nation Reviewwas an Australian Sunday newspaper, which ceased publication in 1981. It was launched in 1970 after independent publisher Gordon Barton bought out Tom Fitzgerald's Nation publication and merged it with his own Sunday Review journal...
.
He was married to Yvonne Hand, who died in 1970. They had two children, Cindy and Geoffrey.
He died in Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
.
Following the death of his first wife, from 1977 Barton, until their separation and estrangement, lived in a defacto relationship with Mary Ellen Ayrton, and her daughter Kate, raising their three children together as a family in Australia and Europe.
The Sunday Observer owned by Barton in the 1960s was short-lived and had nothing to do with the Sunday Observer, UK.