Bonwick, James, 1817-1906

Bonwick obtained access to the Colonial Office Records to 1860 through the Agent-General for Queensland. Refer James Bonwick, "An Octogenarian's Reminiscences" (London, 1902) p 238.

From 1887 to 1902 James Bonwick transcribed early Australian source material located in London, for the New South Wales Government. Most of the transcripts have been published in "Historical Records of New South Wales" (1892-1901) and "Historical Records of Australia" (1914-1926).

James Bonwick, teacher, author, historian and archivist, was born in England in 1817 and began his teaching career there, before emigrating to Hobart in 1841. He taught in Hobart, Adelaide and Melbourne, writing school textbooks and history, and founding one of the earliest Australian teachers' associations. He became an immigration agent for the Queensland government, and was eventually hired by them to transcribe early Australian source material in England for use in Australia. He worked as a transcriber for South Australia, Victoria, Tasmania and New South Wales as well. His work eventually formed the basis of the first fifteen volumes of series I of 'The Historical Records of Australia' (1914-1926). He died in 1906.

In June 1874, James Bonwick was appointed to assist in emigration work for the Queensland Government in England. Specifically, he was assigned to deliver lectures on the advantages of life in Australia. He held this position for nine months. Returning to Australia, he received another Government position which led him back to England. He toured England in 1882 and 1883 searching for important Australian history source materials which he would use in the writing of "First Twenty Years of Australia" (1882) and "Port Phillip Settlement" (1883).

In June 1883, he was appointed by the Queensland Government for one year to transcribe historical materials in Britain. In later years he undertook major transcription projects for other Australian colonies: for Tasmania from 1887 to 1893 and for New South Wales from 1887 to 1902. Many of these later transcripts were published in eight volumes of the "Historical Records of New South Wales" published from 1892 to 1901. The contract to undertake work for the Queensland Government in London is the first known such search for early historical records on behalf of this State.

James Bonwick was regarded in the nineteenth century as one of the few Australian historians concerned with accurate documentation of the nation's past. As early as the mid 1850s he had attempted to make a living from accurate historical writings aimed at both the general reader and scholars. The first such published work was "Discovery and Settlement at Port Phillip" in 1856.