John Farrell (Australian poet)
John Farrell | |
|---|---|
| Born | 18 December 1851 Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Died | 8 January 1904 (aged 52) Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation | poet and editor |
| Language | English |
| Years active | 1878–1904 |
John Farrell (18 December 1851 – 8 January 1904) was an Australian poet and journalist.[1]
Early life
Farrell was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, third son of Andrew Farrell, a chemist, and his wife Mary née Parley.[1] His parents left Dublin, Ireland in 1847 and settled in Buenos Aires, end eventually moved to Victoria (Australia).[1]
Farrell spent some time in Darwin, Northern Territory, gold-digging[1] and then travelled around Australia for some time, working as a brewer again, spending time as a farmer or brewer for several years.[2]
Literary career
In 1878 Farrell published, using the name John O'Farrell, Ephemera: An Iliad of Albury, a small pamphlet of verse, and a rare Australian publication.[2] Two Stories, a Fragmentary Poem was published in Melbourne in 1882.[2][3][4]
Late life and legacy
Farrell continued to be a regular contributor to the Telegraph until 1903[1] due to Bright's disease on 8 January 1904.[3] Farrell had married in November 1876[2] Elizabeth Watts, who survived him with four sons and three daughters.[1] In 1904 a memorial edition of Farrell's poems was published with a memoir by the critic Bertram Stevens under the title of My Sundowner and other Poems.[2] It was re-issued in 1905 as How He Died and other Poems. The contents differ substantially from the 1887 volume of the same name. Farrell's gravestone is inscribed with:
- Sleep Heart of Gold! 'Twas not in vain
- You loved the struggling and the poor,
- And taught, in sweet and strenuous strain
- To battle and endure.
- The lust of wealth, the pride of place,
- Were not a light to guide thy feet,
- But larger hopes and wider space
- For hearts to beat.[1]
Bibliography
- Two Stories : A Fragmentary Poem (1882)
- How He Died and Other Poems (1887)
- My Sundowner and Other Poems (1904)
- An Iliad of Albury and Other Poems (2002)
Biography
- Stenhouse, Paul, John Farrell: Poet, journalist and social reformer, 1851-1904, North Melbourne: Australian Scholarly Publishing, ISBN 9781925801279;
References
- ^ a b c d e f g B. G. Andrews (1972). "Farrell, John (1851 – 1904)". Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 4. MUP. pp. 156–157. Retrieved 28 August 2014.
- ^ a b c d e Serle, Percival (1949). "Farrell, John". Dictionary of Australian Biography. Sydney: Angus & Robertson.
- ^ a b "PERSONAL". The Sydney Morning Herald. NSW. 9 January 1904. p. 10. Retrieved 29 August 2014 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ P. Stenhouse, John Farrell and his friends, Journal of the Australian Catholic Historical Society, 8 (2) (1987), 40-54.
External links
- Australia to England poem by Farrell
- An Iliad of Albury and Other Poems by John Farrell book review
- John Farrell at AustLit