William Lowrie (18 October 1857 – 20 July 1933)Alan W. Black,

, '' Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 10, Melbourne University Press, 1986, pp 160-161. Retrieved 2009-09-16 was an Australian agricultural educationist. Lowrie was the son of John Lowrie, a shepherd, wife Christina, ''née'' Anderson. Lowrie was born near

Galashiels Galashiels (; sco, Gallae, gd, An Geal Àth) is a town in the Scottish Borders with a population of around 12,600. Its name is often colloquially shortened to "Gala". The town is a major commercial centre for the Borders region with extensiv ...

Selkirkshire Selkirkshire or the County of Selkirk ( gd, Siorrachd Shalcraig) is a historic county and registration county of Scotland. It borders Peeblesshire to the west, Midlothian to the north, Roxburghshire to the east, and Dumfriesshire to the south. ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

. Lowrie was brought up on a farm ''Clarilaw'', one of the largest farms in

Roxburghshire Roxburghshire or the County of Roxburgh ( gd, Siorrachd Rosbroig) is a historic county and registration county in the Southern Uplands of Scotland. It borders Dumfriesshire to the west, Selkirkshire and Midlothian to the north-west, and ...

, and attended school at Blainslie; he later entered the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

, where he graduated M.A. in 1883, and obtaining a Highland and Agricultural Society's bursary in 1884, studied agriculture and graduated B.Sc. in 1886 with a prize in mathematics and several first-class honours. Lowrie lectured on natural science and agriculture at Gordon's College,

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), ...

. In 1887 he was appointed Professor at the Roseworthy Agricultural College, South Australia, after the sacking of John D. Custance, and continued his research into the virtues of

fallow Fallow is a farming technique in which arable land is left without sowing for one or more vegetative cycles. The goal of fallowing is to allow the land to recover and store Organic compound, organic matter while retaining moisture and disrupting ...

ing and the use of water-soluble

phosphate In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphoric acid . The phosphate or orthophosphate ion is derived from phosph ...

s as

fertilizer A fertilizer (American English) or fertiliser (British English; see spelling differences) is any material of natural or synthetic origin that is applied to soil or to plant tissues to supply plant nutrients. Fertilizers may be distinct from ...

. Following this Lowrie travelled throughout the

wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeolog ...

-growing districts of

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

, addressing farmers and endeavouring to persuade them to adopt his methods. He resigned his position as principal of Roseworthy Agricultural College after criticism of him in Parliament. He was urged to reconsider by the Agricultural and Horticultural Society and others. W. C. Grasby was appointed as Head Master, freeing Lowrie to concentrate on research and promulgation of modern farming methods and the resignation was withdrawn. He was contracted by the Victorian government to report on the Longerenong and Dookie agricultural colleges. His reports, which were constructive though highly critical, were not welcomed. He was made an honorary and contributing member of the R.A.& H.S.S.A. in 1898 as a show of confidence in him. In 1901 he left for a position in

Canterbury, New Zealand Canterbury ( mi, Waitaha) is a region of New Zealand, located in the central-eastern South Island. The region covers an area of , making it the largest region in the country by area. It is home to a population of The region in its current f ...

as principal of the

Lincoln Agricultural College Lincoln University (Māori: ''Te Whare Wānaka o Aoraki'') is a New Zealand university that was formed in 1990 when Lincoln College, Canterbury was made independent of the University of Canterbury. Founded in 1878, it is the oldest agricultural ...

, then in 1908 became Director of Agriculture in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to ...

where his brother-in-law,

Newton Moore Major General Sir Newton James Moore, (17 May 1870 – 28 October 1936) was an Australian politician, businessman and army officer. He served as the eighth Premier of Western Australia from 1906 to 1910 and, following service in the First World ...

, was premier. In 1909 he declined the offer of the chair of agriculture at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public university, public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one o ...

. Lowrie returned to South Australia in 1911 as Director of Agriculture, following the resignation of Professor William Angus (and acting directorship of A. E. V. Richardson). Lowrie resigned in 1914 owing to differences of opinion with the Minister for Agriculture regarding the reorganization of the department. After his retirement Lowrie took up farming on 'Battunga', near

Echunga, South Australia Echunga ( ) is a small town in the Adelaide Hills located south-east of Adelaide in South Australia. The area was settled by Europeans during the period of British colonisation of South Australia in 1839, with the town laid out in 1849. The na ...

and specialized in farming and breeding pure-bred Border Leicester sheep. Lowrie died at Echunga on 20 July 1933 and was buried at St George's cemetery, Magill. Lowrie had married twice, firstly to Mary Longbottom on 24 June 1891; she died four months later after an ectopic pregnancy. On 23 March 1903 Lowrie married Alice Longbottom (Mary's sister) who survived him. There were no children. Lowrie did excellent work, especially in South Australia; no one else in his time did more to make farming profitable. A bust of him, by Marguerite Richardson, is at Roseworthy Agricultural College.

References

External links

History of South Australian Agriculture (SA Government)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lowrie, William 1857 births 1933 deaths Australian agronomists Australian educational theorists Australian people of Scottish descent Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Lincoln University (New Zealand) faculty