Charles Hardie Buzacott (1 August 1835 – 19 July 1918) was an Australian journalist, publisher and politician.

Early life

Buzacott was born in Torrington,

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

shire, England, son of James Buzacott and his wife Ann, ''née'' Hitchcock. He migrated with his elder brother William to

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

in 1852.

Journalism

In Sydney, Charles joined the ''

Empire An empire is a "political unit" made up of several territories and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the empire (sometimes referred to as the metropole) ex ...

'' newspaper and learnt to be a compositor. In 1860 he went to Maryborough, Queensland, and established the ''

Maryborough Chronicle Maryborough may refer to: * Maryborough, Queensland, Australia ** Maryborough Base Hospital * Maryborough, Victoria, Australia * The former name of Portlaoise Portlaoise ( ), or Port Laoise (), is the county town of County Laois, Ireland. ...

'', selling it four years later. Buzacott then went to the Clermont goldfield, and started the ''

Peak Downs Telegram The ''Peak Downs Telegram'' (later the ''Clermont Telegram'') was a newspaper published in Clermont, Queensland, Australia. History The ''Peak Downs Telegram'' was started by Charles Hardie Buzacott and E. J. Fried on 2 August 1864. Buzacott, h ...

'', which he edited. In 1869 Buzacott sold his interest in the ''Telegram'' and moved to Gladstone where he took over the ''

Observer An observer is one who engages in observation or in watching an experiment. Observer may also refer to: Computer science and information theory * In information theory, any system which receives information from an object * State observer in co ...

''. In 1870 Charles joined his brother William on the ''

Rockhampton Bulletin ''The Morning Bulletin'' is an online newspaper servicing the city of Rockhampton and the surrounding areas of Central Queensland, Australia. From 1861 to 2020, ''The Morning Bulletin'' was published as a print edition, before then becoming a ...

'', which the latter had established in 1861. In 1878 he moved to

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

, and became a leader writer on the ''Courier''. During November 1880 he purchased

Gresley Lukin Gresley Lukin (1840–1916) was an Australian public servant, newspaper owner, company manager and newspaper editor, most prominently the part-proprietor of the Brisbane Newspaper Company (publisher of the Brisbane Courier and its weekly The Q ...

's shares in the Brisbane Newspaper Company, the proprietor of the '' Brisbane Courier'' and its weekly ''

The Queenslander ''The Queenslander'' was the weekly summary and literary edition of the '' Brisbane Courier'', the leading journal in the colony—and later, federal state—of Queensland since the 1850s. ''The Queenslander'' was launched by the Brisbane New ...

'' and took on Lukin's former position as the company's managing editor and director. He was to remain in this position until 1894, occasionally taking and active role in the editing and occasionally contributing articles and editorials for the journals. He later bought the ''

Rockhampton Argus Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. The population of Rockhampton in June 2021 was 79,967, Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. making it the fourth-largest city in the state outside of th ...

'' and converted it into an evening paper, the '' Daily Record''. He founded the ''

Daily Mail The ''Daily Mail'' is a British daily middle-market tabloid newspaper and news websitePeter Wilb"Paul Dacre of the Daily Mail: The man who hates liberal Britain", ''New Statesman'', 19 December 2013 (online version: 2 January 2014) publish ...

'' in Brisbane in 1904, and in spite of his advancing years carried it through its early difficulties as editor and managing director.

Politics

In 1873 Charles Buzacott was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Queensland The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembl ...

for

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. The population of Rockhampton in June 2021 was 79,967, Estimated resident population, 30 June 2018. making it the fourth-largest city in the state outside of the ...

. In 1874, and again in 1876, he brought in bills in an attempt to establish an eight-hour work day in Queensland, but he was in advance of his times and did not succeed in steering them past the committee stage. He resigned from the assembly in 1877. Having been returned to the assembly again, in January 1879 he became postmaster-general in McIlwraith's first ministry, and was responsible for the drafting of the divisional boards measure which was the foundation of later Queensland local government acts. He was an active minister, and during his two years of office he united the previously separate post and telegraph departments, and succeeded in having tenders called for a

Torres Straits The Torres Strait (), also known as Zenadh Kes, is a strait between Australia and the Melanesian island of New Guinea. It is wide at its narrowest extent. To the south is Cape York Peninsula, the northernmost extremity of the Australian mai ...

service between Brisbane and London. The telephone was also introduced during his period. He was appointed to the

Queensland Legislative Council The Queensland Legislative Council was the upper house of the parliament in the Australian state of Queensland. It was a fully nominated body which first took office on 1 May 1860. It was abolished by the Constitution Amendment Act 1921, which to ...

in 1894; although a lifetime appointment, he resigned in May 1901 and did not hold political office again.

Later life

With his health failing, he retired to

Stanthorpe Stanthorpe is a rural town and locality in the Southern Downs Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , Stanthorpe had a population of 5,406 people. The area surrounding the town is known as the Granite Belt. Geography Stanthorpe lies on the New ...

in 1906 but continued to make occasional contributions to the press until not long before his death at Banca View in Stanthorpe on 19 July 1918. Buzacott had married Louisa Whiteford in 1857 who survived him with three sons and two daughters.

Street name

A number of street names in the

suburb of Carina Heights are identical to the surnames of former Members of the

Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly h ...

. One of these is Buzacott Street.

Early life

Journalism

Politics

Later life

Street name

References

Further reading