George Swinburne
Encyclopedia
George Swinburne was an Australia
n engineer
, politician
and philanthropist. He founded the institution which later became Swinburne University of Technology
.
, near Newcastle-on-Tyne, England
, son of Mark William Swinburne, and his wife Jane née Coates. Mark Swinburne was a draughtsman in the Armstrong works at Elswick
, working for a salary of 27s. a week. Later Mark Swiburne established his own business in 1892 as a brass-founder, engineer and coppersmith
. Mark married Jane in 1860.
George Swinburne was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle
, and in 1874 became apprenticed to chemical merchants, J. Williamson & Co. After completing his apprenticeship he became a clerk in the same business (1880–82), and studied engineering
in the evening, shorthand
and German
before beginning work in the morning, and joined a debating society. On Sundays Swinburne taught a class in a Methodist Sunday school; he had music lessons and was an avid reader.
, finding employment in the gas and mechanical engineering business of his uncle, John Coates. In April 1885, Swinburne was taken into partnership and was able to put £300 of his own savings into the business. Swinburne's chief recreation was music and in June 1885 he was one of the choristers at the Handel festival held in the Crystal Palace
. Politically, Swinburne was an ardent Gladstonian Liberal
, in 1886 he became election agent for the Liberal candidate for St Pancras South
, Sir Julian Goldsmid, 3rd Baronet
who was elected after a strenuous campaign. Swinburne found electioneering a great strain, "a game not worth playing--ended in weariness, sleepless nights and restless days". In December 1885 Coates had gone to Melbourne
to start a business, Swinburne was left in charge in London. Coates found the prospects so good that Swinburne followed him and arrived in November 1886.
.
Swinburne was engineer and manager of the Melbourne company until 1897. Swinburne visited England
in 1891 and fortunately withdrew most of his capital from Melbourne to help his father and brother to start a business; in doing so he practically escaped the effects of the end of the land boom and the bank crisis of 1893. Swinburne visited the United States
and Europe
in 1897 studying the development of electricity in competition with gas. He decided that each would have its own place.
municipal council in 1898 and in 1902 became mayor. Also in 1902, Swinburne became member for the Electoral district of Hawthorn
in the Victorian Legislative Assembly
, and sat as a supporter of W. H. Irvine. There had been a severe drought in Australia and the policy speech foreshadowed "important works for the conservation and distribution of water in the arid areas". The earlier experiments initiated by Alfred Deakin
had not really been successful, and it was clear that their organization and principles would need careful revision. Swinburne had studied Victorian irrigation
and realised the huge cost of storing the winter and spring rains for use summer; he believed that water charges should take the form of a rate payable, not only by those who used the water, but by all whose land was benefitted by irrigation. In November 1903 Irvine's health was so seriously affected by over-work that he was compelled to resign the premiership, and Thomas Bent
who succeeded him gave Swinburne the portfolio of minister of water-supply (1904–08). Swinburne was in England at the time but he collected all the available literature on the subject and studied it on the voyage out. He then visited the irrigation settlement with leading officers of his department. The whole problem was full of complications, but Swinburne was able to have the drafting of the water bill begun in June 1904. It involved the appointment of the state rivers and water supply commission to undertake the control and management of all state water. The bill passed through the assembly but was not passed by the Victorian Legislative Council
. Swinburne had to travel through the country and to try and convert the opponents to the bill. In 1905 it passed the assembly again and Swinburne was asked to attend the Council and explain the provisions of his bill. With some amendments, the bill
was finally passed by the Council. This act is said to be Swinburne's greatest achievement.
Swinburne became Minister for Agriculture in November 1904 and was also of great assistance to Bent as treasurer. As Minister for Agriculture, he was the first to realise that the most important function of the department was to educate the farmer. Swinburne was mainly responsible for the foundation of chairs in agricultural science and veterinary science at the University of Melbourne
, although the latter chair has since been abandoned. Swinburne was involved in the Murray River
water-sharing arrangement, his draft agreement of 1906 was remarkably close to that finally accepted in 1915. In 1907 Bent visited England and Swinburne was leader of the Assembly during his absence. After Bent's return the ministry's position weakened, and Swinburne and four other ministers resigned on 31 October 1908. During the negotiations for the reconstruction of the ministry, an advance was made to Swinburne to take over the leadership of the party, and Bent offered to retire in his favour, but Swinburne, weary from overwork, could see no way of reconciling the conflicting interests in the party and declined the offer. Swinburne also felt the strain of a motion of censure on him moved in September. Behind this motion were severe attacks made on his probity by The Age
newspaper. The motion in the house was defeated by a large majority, Swinburne brought an action against The Age, and in 1909 obtained a verdict for £3250 damages and costs. The Age
took the case to two higher courts but was defeated in each case. Age proprietor David Syme
had practically been a dictator in politics for many years; his mistake in this case was to attack a man who was not only perfectly honest, but had the courage to go into the witness box and the ability to withstand the cross-examination of two of the most able barristers of the day.
appointed by the federal government
. A host of matters was referred to the commission, and Swinburne thought it right to resign from all his directorates and practically abandon the business career in which he had been so successful. Much work was done by the commission and it is due to a suggestion made by this body that the "Advisory Council of Science and Industry" (later to become the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
) the was eventually established. However, a reduction of powers of the commission after a judgment of the high court resulted in Swinburne's decision to resign. Swinburne did significant World War I
work and was chairman of the board of business administration of the defence department, and later was civil and finance member of the military board. In 1919 when the electricity commission was instituted Swinburne was appointed one of the four commissioners, with Sir John Monash
as chairman. Swinburne resigned this position in 1925, when most of the initial difficulties of using brown coal
for power generation had been surmounted.
Swinburne worked hard but he was never too busy to find time for additional activities of importance. He was a driving force in the establishment of the Eastern Suburbs technical college at Hawthorn
, and one way and another contributed over £15,000 to it. Its name was afterwards changed to the Swinburne Technical College, and in 1992 it became Swinburne University of Technology
. Swinburne became a member of the council of public instruction after he left state politics, and especially encouraged decentralization and technical education. He was for some years on the council of the University of Melbourne
and was also one of the trustees of the public library, museums and National Gallery of Victoria
. In April 1928 he became president of the trustees and much was hoped from him in this position. He had been a candidate for the Commonwealth senate in 1922 but the Labor
candidates in 1922 were elected, and in 1928 he was elected to the Victorian Legislative Council
. On 4 September 1928 he was in his place in the council chamber when he suddenly collapsed and died. Swinburne had married Ethel Hamer on 17 February 1890 who survived him with four daughters. Swinburne's bust by Paul Montford is at the National Gallery, Melbourne. His second daughter, Gwendolen Hamer Swinburne, published A Source Book of Australian History (1919) , and Womanhood in the Life of the Nations (1923).
Swinburne was over six feet (183 cm) in height, thin, slightly angular. He was only a few years in parliament, but the influence of his work was felt long-term.
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 engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...
, politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
and philanthropist. He founded the institution which later became Swinburne University of Technology
Swinburne University of Technology
Swinburne University of Technology is an Australian public dual sector university based in Melbourne, Victoria. The institution was founded by the Honourable George Swinburne in 1908 and achieved university status in June 1992...
.
Early life
Swinburne was born at ParadiseParadise, Tyne and Wear
Paradise is an area centered around the area at the bottom of Atkinson Road, where it used to meet Scotswood Road. It is hardly large enough to be called a suburb, being not more than a collection of a few streets....
, near Newcastle-on-Tyne, 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...
, son of Mark William Swinburne, and his wife Jane née Coates. Mark Swinburne was a draughtsman in the Armstrong works at Elswick
Elswick, Tyne and Wear
Elswick is a ward of the city of Newcastle upon Tyne, England, in the western part of the city, bordering the river Tyne. One of the earliest references to the coal mining industry of the north east occurs in 1330, when it was recorded that the Prior of Tynemouth let a colliery, called Heygrove, at...
, working for a salary of 27s. a week. Later Mark Swiburne established his own business in 1892 as a brass-founder, engineer and coppersmith
Coppersmith
A coppersmith, also known as a redsmith, is a person who makes artifacts from copper. The term redsmith comes from the colour of copper....
. Mark married Jane in 1860.
George Swinburne was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle
Royal Grammar School, Newcastle
Royal Grammar School Newcastle upon Tyne, known locally and often abbreviated as RGS, is a long-established co-educational, independent school in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It gained its Royal Charter under Queen Elizabeth I...
, and in 1874 became apprenticed to chemical merchants, J. Williamson & Co. After completing his apprenticeship he became a clerk in the same business (1880–82), and studied engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
in the evening, shorthand
Shorthand
Shorthand is an abbreviated symbolic writing method that increases speed or brevity of writing as compared to a normal method of writing a language. The process of writing in shorthand is called stenography, from the Greek stenos and graphē or graphie...
and German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
before beginning work in the morning, and joined a debating society. On Sundays Swinburne taught a class in a Methodist Sunday school; he had music lessons and was an avid reader.
Early career
In September 1882 Swinburne went to LondonLondon
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...
, finding employment in the gas and mechanical engineering business of his uncle, John Coates. In April 1885, Swinburne was taken into partnership and was able to put £300 of his own savings into the business. Swinburne's chief recreation was music and in June 1885 he was one of the choristers at the Handel festival held in the Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace
The Crystal Palace was a cast-iron and glass building originally erected in Hyde Park, London, England, to house the Great Exhibition of 1851. More than 14,000 exhibitors from around the world gathered in the Palace's of exhibition space to display examples of the latest technology developed in...
. Politically, Swinburne was an ardent Gladstonian Liberal
Gladstonian Liberalism
Gladstonian Liberalism is a political doctrine named after the British Victorian Prime Minister and leader of the Liberal Party, William Ewart Gladstone. Gladstonian Liberalism consisted of limited government expenditure and low taxation whilst making sure government had balanced budgets...
, in 1886 he became election agent for the Liberal candidate for St Pancras South
St Pancras South (UK Parliament constituency)
St. Pancras South was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election. It was created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 for the 1885 general election and...
, Sir Julian Goldsmid, 3rd Baronet
Sir Julian Goldsmid, 3rd Baronet
Sir Julian Goldsmid, 3rd Baronet was a British lawyer, businessman and Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1866 and 1896....
who was elected after a strenuous campaign. Swinburne found electioneering a great strain, "a game not worth playing--ended in weariness, sleepless nights and restless days". In December 1885 Coates had gone to Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
to start a business, Swinburne was left in charge in London. Coates found the prospects so good that Swinburne followed him and arrived in November 1886.
Australia
Swinburne's role was to secure contracts for erecting gas plants for the firm of John Coates and Company. In 1887 the Melbourne Hydraulic Power Company was formed, supplying power to city buildings. In 1888 a similar company was established in SydneySydney
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...
.
Swinburne was engineer and manager of the Melbourne company until 1897. Swinburne visited 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...
in 1891 and fortunately withdrew most of his capital from Melbourne to help his father and brother to start a business; in doing so he practically escaped the effects of the end of the land boom and the bank crisis of 1893. Swinburne visited the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
in 1897 studying the development of electricity in competition with gas. He decided that each would have its own place.
Politics
Swinburne was elected a member of the HawthornHawthorn, Victoria
Hawthorn is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara...
municipal council in 1898 and in 1902 became mayor. Also in 1902, Swinburne became member for the Electoral district of Hawthorn
Electoral district of Hawthorn
The Electoral district of Hawthorn is an electoral district of the Victorian Legislative Assembly. It was first proclaimed in 1889 and has usually been a safe seat for the Liberal Party and its predecessors....
in the Victorian Legislative Assembly
Victorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of Victoria in Australia. Together with the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house, it sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Melbourne.-History:...
, and sat as a supporter of W. H. Irvine. There had been a severe drought in Australia and the policy speech foreshadowed "important works for the conservation and distribution of water in the arid areas". The earlier experiments initiated by Alfred Deakin
Alfred Deakin
Alfred Deakin , Australian politician, was a leader of the movement for Australian federation and later the second Prime Minister of Australia. In the last quarter of the 19th century, Deakin was a major contributor to the establishment of liberal reforms in the colony of Victoria, including the...
had not really been successful, and it was clear that their organization and principles would need careful revision. Swinburne had studied Victorian irrigation
Irrigation
Irrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall...
and realised the huge cost of storing the winter and spring rains for use summer; he believed that water charges should take the form of a rate payable, not only by those who used the water, but by all whose land was benefitted by irrigation. In November 1903 Irvine's health was so seriously affected by over-work that he was compelled to resign the premiership, and Thomas Bent
Thomas Bent
Sir Thomas Bent KCMG , Australian politician, was the 22nd Premier of Victoria. He was one of the most colourful and corrupt politicians in Victorian history....
who succeeded him gave Swinburne the portfolio of minister of water-supply (1904–08). Swinburne was in England at the time but he collected all the available literature on the subject and studied it on the voyage out. He then visited the irrigation settlement with leading officers of his department. The whole problem was full of complications, but Swinburne was able to have the drafting of the water bill begun in June 1904. It involved the appointment of the state rivers and water supply commission to undertake the control and management of all state water. The bill passed through the assembly but was not passed by the Victorian Legislative Council
Victorian Legislative Council
The Victorian Legislative Council, is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Victoria, Australia; the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit in Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Council serves as a house of review, in a similar fashion to...
. Swinburne had to travel through the country and to try and convert the opponents to the bill. In 1905 it passed the assembly again and Swinburne was asked to attend the Council and explain the provisions of his bill. With some amendments, the bill
Bill (proposed law)
A bill is a proposed law under consideration by a legislature. A bill does not become law until it is passed by the legislature and, in most cases, approved by the executive. Once a bill has been enacted into law, it is called an act or a statute....
was finally passed by the Council. This act is said to be Swinburne's greatest achievement.
Swinburne became Minister for Agriculture in November 1904 and was also of great assistance to Bent as treasurer. As Minister for Agriculture, he was the first to realise that the most important function of the department was to educate the farmer. Swinburne was mainly responsible for the foundation of chairs in agricultural science and veterinary science at the University of Melbourne
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
, although the latter chair has since been abandoned. Swinburne was involved in the Murray River
Murray River
The Murray River is Australia's longest river. At in length, the Murray rises in the Australian Alps, draining the western side of Australia's highest mountains and, for most of its length, meanders across Australia's inland plains, forming the border between New South Wales and Victoria as it...
water-sharing arrangement, his draft agreement of 1906 was remarkably close to that finally accepted in 1915. In 1907 Bent visited England and Swinburne was leader of the Assembly during his absence. After Bent's return the ministry's position weakened, and Swinburne and four other ministers resigned on 31 October 1908. During the negotiations for the reconstruction of the ministry, an advance was made to Swinburne to take over the leadership of the party, and Bent offered to retire in his favour, but Swinburne, weary from overwork, could see no way of reconciling the conflicting interests in the party and declined the offer. Swinburne also felt the strain of a motion of censure on him moved in September. Behind this motion were severe attacks made on his probity by The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
newspaper. The motion in the house was defeated by a large majority, Swinburne brought an action against The Age, and in 1909 obtained a verdict for £3250 damages and costs. The Age
The Age
The Age is a daily broadsheet newspaper, which has been published in Melbourne, Australia since 1854. Owned and published by Fairfax Media, The Age primarily serves Victoria, but is also available for purchase in Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and border regions of South Australia and...
took the case to two higher courts but was defeated in each case. Age proprietor David Syme
David Syme
David Syme was a Scottish-Australian newspaper proprietor of The Age and regarded as "the father of protection in Australia" who had immense influence in the Government of Victoria.-Early life and family:...
had practically been a dictator in politics for many years; his mistake in this case was to attack a man who was not only perfectly honest, but had the courage to go into the witness box and the ability to withstand the cross-examination of two of the most able barristers of the day.
Retirement
On 31 July 1913 Swinburne retired from parliament to become a member of the Inter-State CommissionInter-State Commission
The Inter-State Commission, or Interstate Commission, is a defunct constitutional body under Australian law. The envisaged chief functions of the Inter-State Commission were to administer and adjudicate matters relating to interstate trade...
appointed by the federal government
Government of Australia
The Commonwealth of Australia is a federal constitutional monarchy under a parliamentary democracy. The Commonwealth of Australia was formed in 1901 as a result of an agreement among six self-governing British colonies, which became the six states...
. A host of matters was referred to the commission, and Swinburne thought it right to resign from all his directorates and practically abandon the business career in which he had been so successful. Much work was done by the commission and it is due to a suggestion made by this body that the "Advisory Council of Science and Industry" (later to become the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation
The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation is the national government body for scientific research in Australia...
) the was eventually established. However, a reduction of powers of the commission after a judgment of the high court resulted in Swinburne's decision to resign. Swinburne did significant World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
work and was chairman of the board of business administration of the defence department, and later was civil and finance member of the military board. In 1919 when the electricity commission was instituted Swinburne was appointed one of the four commissioners, with Sir John Monash
John Monash
General Sir John Monash GCMG, KCB, VD was a civil engineer who became the Australian military commander in the First World War. He commanded the 13th Infantry Brigade before the War and then became commander of the 4th Brigade in Egypt shortly after the outbreak of the War with whom he took part...
as chairman. Swinburne resigned this position in 1925, when most of the initial difficulties of using brown coal
Lignite
Lignite, often referred to as brown coal, or Rosebud coal by Northern Pacific Railroad,is a soft brown fuel with characteristics that put it somewhere between coal and peat...
for power generation had been surmounted.
Swinburne worked hard but he was never too busy to find time for additional activities of importance. He was a driving force in the establishment of the Eastern Suburbs technical college at Hawthorn
Hawthorn, Victoria
Hawthorn is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara...
, and one way and another contributed over £15,000 to it. Its name was afterwards changed to the Swinburne Technical College, and in 1992 it became Swinburne University of Technology
Swinburne University of Technology
Swinburne University of Technology is an Australian public dual sector university based in Melbourne, Victoria. The institution was founded by the Honourable George Swinburne in 1908 and achieved university status in June 1992...
. Swinburne became a member of the council of public instruction after he left state politics, and especially encouraged decentralization and technical education. He was for some years on the council of the University of Melbourne
University of Melbourne
The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...
and was also one of the trustees of the public library, museums and National Gallery of Victoria
National Gallery of Victoria
The National Gallery of Victoria is an art gallery and museum in Melbourne, Australia. Founded in 1861, it is the oldest and the largest public art gallery in Australia. Since December 2003, NGV has operated across two sites...
. In April 1928 he became president of the trustees and much was hoped from him in this position. He had been a candidate for the Commonwealth senate in 1922 but the Labor
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
candidates in 1922 were elected, and in 1928 he was elected to the Victorian Legislative Council
Victorian Legislative Council
The Victorian Legislative Council, is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Victoria, Australia; the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit in Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Council serves as a house of review, in a similar fashion to...
. On 4 September 1928 he was in his place in the council chamber when he suddenly collapsed and died. Swinburne had married Ethel Hamer on 17 February 1890 who survived him with four daughters. Swinburne's bust by Paul Montford is at the National Gallery, Melbourne. His second daughter, Gwendolen Hamer Swinburne, published A Source Book of Australian History (1919) , and Womanhood in the Life of the Nations (1923).
Swinburne was over six feet (183 cm) in height, thin, slightly angular. He was only a few years in parliament, but the influence of his work was felt long-term.
External links
- Swinburne, George (1861 - 1928) biography at Encyclopedia of Australian Science
- Portrait of Hon. George Swinburne, Commissioner 1919-1926.