Henry Luke White (9 May 1860 – 30 June 1927)
[ was a wealthy grazier, and a keen philatelist, book collector, amateur ]ornithologist
Ornithology is a branch of zoology that concerns the "methodological study and consequent knowledge of birds with all that relates to them." Several aspects of ornithology differ from related disciplines, due partly to the high visibility and th ...
and oölogist of Scone
A scone is a baked good, usually made of either wheat or oatmeal with baking powder as a leavening agent, and baked on sheet pans. A scone is often slightly sweetened and occasionally glazed with egg wash. The scone is a basic component of th ...
, New South Wales
)
, nickname =
, image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg
, map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates:
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name = Australia
, established_title = Before federation
, es ...
, Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...
.
Personal life
Born 9 May 1860 at Anambah third son of pastoralist Francis White and his wife Mary Hannah nee Cobb. He first went to Calder House in Redfern in 1875 he attended the Goulburn School at Garroorigang. In 1884 he became a qualified surveyor
Surveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, art, and science of determining the terrestrial two-dimensional or three-dimensional positions of points and the distances and angles between them. A land surveying professional is ca ...
and in 1885 became the manager of Belltrees near Scone
A scone is a baked good, usually made of either wheat or oatmeal with baking powder as a leavening agent, and baked on sheet pans. A scone is often slightly sweetened and occasionally glazed with egg wash. The scone is a basic component of th ...
which he owned with his younger brothers William, Arthur, and Victor. His older brother James
James is a common English language surname and given name:
*James (name), the typically masculine first name James
* James (surname), various people with the last name James
James or James City may also refer to:
People
* King James (disambiguat ...
was also a pastoralist and would later serve on the New South Wales Legislative Council
The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...
. James had married Emiline Eliza Ebsworth in 1882 and in a dynastic union, Henry married a Emiline's sister, Louisa Maude, on 14 April 1887. His brother Arthur married a third sister, Millicent, in 1893.
Belltrees had 96,000 merino sheep
The Merino is a breed or group of breeds of domestic sheep, characterised by very fine soft wool. It was established in Spain near the end of the Middle Ages, and was for several centuries kept as a strict Spanish monopoly; exports of the breed ...
and 10,000 cross bred sheep that would take five months each year to shear. In 1902 they began using Wolseley sheep shearing machines. The estate was also famous for its Durham shorthorn and Angus
Angus may refer to:
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cattle. In 1906 he was appointed a temporarily councilor for the Woolooma Shire, (renamed Upper Hunter
The Upper Hunter Shire is a local government area in the Upper Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. The Shire was formed in May 2004 from the Scone Shire and parts of Murrurundi and Merriwa shires.
The Mayor of the Upper Hunter Shir ...
in 1917), serving as Shire President until 1927, and missing only 2 council meetings in those 20 years.[ The brothers inherited some of the famous stud mares from their uncle James White, winning the 1896 ]AJC Derby AJC may refer to:
* Agreement on Journey Continuation, an agreement between European rail operators to allow passengers in case of a missed connection
* Allen Jack+Cottier (AJ+C), an architectural practice
* American Jewish Committee, an advocacy ...
with Charge and the 1900 Doncaster
Doncaster (, ) is a city in South Yorkshire, England. Named after the River Don, it is the administrative centre of the larger City of Doncaster. It is the second largest settlement in South Yorkshire after Sheffield. Doncaster is situated in ...
with Parapet.[
]
Philately
White was a noted philatelist
Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. Philately involves more than just stamp collecting or the study of postage; it is possi ...
, purchasing a Queensland collection of stamps from Edward van Weenen in 1897.[ In 1917 he presented his collection of stamps from New South Wales, then valued at £15,000, to the Mitchell Library.][ He subsequently donated his collection of stamps from Western Australia, Queensland and Tasmania.] He was appointed to the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists
The Roll of Distinguished Philatelists (RDP) is a Philately, philatelic award of international scale, created by the Philatelic Congress of Great Britain in 1921. The Roll consists of five pieces of parchment to which the signatories add their n ...
in 1922.
Book collecting
He also collected Australian books and possessed more than 2,000 rare items. His collection included volumes on philately, ornithology and cricket. His book collecting was aided by the advice of the noted Australian bookseller, Albert Henry Spencer.
Ornithology
H. L. White wrote short articles published in ''Emu
The emu () (''Dromaius novaehollandiae'') is the second-tallest living bird after its ratite relative the ostrich. It is endemic to Australia where it is the largest native bird and the only extant member of the genus ''Dromaius''. The emu' ...
'', and corresponded with the American Ornithologists' Union
The American Ornithological Society (AOS) is an ornithological organization based in the United States. The society was formed in October 2016 by the merger of the American Ornithologists' Union (AOU) and the Cooper Ornithological Society. Its m ...
. He was a member of the Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union
The Royal Australasian Ornithologists Union (RAOU), now part of BirdLife Australia, was Australia's largest non-government, non-profit, bird conservation organisation. It was founded in 1901 to promote the study and bird conservation, conservati ...
(RAOU) to which he was a generous benefactor. His collections of 8,500 bird skins and over 4,200 egg clutches were donated to the National Museum of Victoria
National may refer to:
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, Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
where they are known as the H. L. White Collection. He is also commemorated in the BirdLife Australia's (previously RAOU) large ornithological book and serial collection: the H. L. White Library.
Family
H. L. White was the father of Alfred Henry Ebsworth White, who was honoured in the name of the grey honeyeater, '' Conopophila whitei'' by the ornithologist Alfred John North
Alfred John North (11 June 1855 – 6 May 1917) was an Australian ornithologist.
North was born in Melbourne and was educated at Melbourne Grammar School. He was appointed to the Australian Museum, Sydney in 1886 and was given a permanent positi ...
. He was also the uncle of the writer Patrick White
Patrick Victor Martindale White (28 May 1912 – 30 September 1990) was a British-born Australian writer who published 12 novels, three short-story collections, and eight plays, from 1935 to 1987.
White's fiction employs humour, florid prose, ...
, who described him as the only paternal uncle he favoured.
References and sources
;References
;Sources
*
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{{DEFAULTSORT:White, Henry Luke
White, Henry Luke
1860 births
1927 deaths
Egg collectors
Signatories to the Roll of Distinguished Philatelists
Australian philatelists
Australian book and manuscript collectors