Samuel Bennett (28 March 1815 – 2 June 1878) was a journalist, newspaper owner and historian in colonial Australia.
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Background
Bennett was born in
Camborne,
Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...
, England.
He went to Australia in 1841, having been engaged by Messrs. Stevens & Stokes of ''
The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
'' to superintend the typographical department of that paper. Having held this post for seventeen years, in 1859 Bennett purchased
''The Empire'' newspaper which had been started by
Henry Parkes
Sir Henry Parkes, (27 May 1815 – 27 April 1896) was a colonial Australian politician and longest non-consecutive Premier of the Colony of New South Wales, the present-day state of New South Wales in the Commonwealth of Australia. He has ...
nine years previously. Messrs. Hanson & Bennett conducted ''The Empire'' for several years as a daily and weekly journal, Bennett becoming sole proprietor some time before it ceased publication.
[
Bennett also started in 1867 '' The Evening News'', and in 1870 '']The Australian Town and Country Journal
''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'', a weekly newspaper, both of which achieved phenomenal success, with circulations of 32,000 and 30,000 respectively in 1881.[ Bennett was the author of ''The History of Australian Discovery and Colonisation'', which is recognised as a standard work of reference.
]
Legacy
Bennett died of tetanus
Tetanus, also known as lockjaw, is a bacterial infection caused by ''Clostridium tetani'', and is characterized by muscle spasms. In the most common type, the spasms begin in the jaw and then progress to the rest of the body. Each spasm usually ...
at his residence, Mundarrah Towers, Little Coogee, Sydney, 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 ...
, on 2 June 1878.Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
; they had seven children together. Bennett was survived by three sons (all three — Alfred b.1851, Frank b.1853 and Christopher b.1857 — joined their father and continued his newspaper business, his will providing for his eldest surviving son to be the managing proprietor, they succeeded each other in birth order) and a daughter, Rose, also a proprietor, who married John Henniker Heaton
Sir John Henniker Heaton, 1st Baronet, (18 May 1848 – 8 September 1914) was a United Kingdom Member of Parliament and a postal reformer and journalist in Australia.
Early life
Heaton was the only son of Lieutenant Colonel John Heaton and ...
.[
]
References
External links
The History of Australian Discovery and Colonisation
online vestion at babel.hathitrust.org
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Samuel
1815 births
1878 deaths
19th-century Australian journalists
19th-century Australian male writers
19th-century male writers
19th-century Australian newspaper publishers (people)
Australian newspaper editors
Burials at Waverley Cemetery
Australian people of Cornish descent
British emigrants to Australia
People from Camborne
19th-century Australian historians
Australian male journalists