William Curnow (1832 – 14 October 1903) was a

Cornish Australian Cornish Australians ( kw, Ostralians kernewek) are citizens of Australia who are fully or partially of Cornish heritage or descent, an ethnic group native to Cornwall in the United Kingdom. Cornish Australians form part of the worldwide Corni ...

journalist, and Methodist minister, and was editor 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 ...

'' for 15 years.

Early life

Curnow was baptised on 2 December 1832 at St Ives, Cornwall, United Kingdom, the son of James Curnow, a tin miner, and his wife Jane, née Hallow. As a child he competed in a recitation contest at a local

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...

chapel in which he beat a young

Henry Irving Sir Henry Irving (6 February 1838 – 13 October 1905), christened John Henry Brodribb, sometimes known as J. H. Irving, was an English stage actor in the Victorian era, known as an actor-manager because he took complete responsibility ( ...

who at that time was still known by the surname Brodribb. At the time of the

United Kingdom Census 1851 The United Kingdom Census of 1851 recorded the people residing in every household on the night of Sunday 30 March 1851, and was the second of the UK censuses to include details of household members. However, this census added considerably to the f ...

, when he was 18, Curnow was working as a tin miner. He trained for the Wesleyan Methodist

ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

, before emigrating to Australia in 1854.

Ministry

Arriving in Sydney on 23 May 1854 with fellow

Cornishman The Cornish people or Cornish ( kw, Kernowyon, ang, Cornƿīelisċ) are an ethnic group native to, or associated with Cornwall: and a recognised national minority in the United Kingdom, which can trace its roots to the ancient Britons w ...

and minister William Kelynack, he served as minister at

Newcastle Newcastle usually refers to: *Newcastle upon Tyne, a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England *Newcastle-under-Lyme, a town in Staffordshire, England *Newcastle, New South Wales, a metropolitan area in Australia, named after Newcastle ...

Maitland Maitland is an English and Scottish surname. It arrived in Britain after the Norman conquest of 1066. There are two theories about its source. It is either a nickname reference to "bad temper/disposition" (Old French, ''Maltalent''; Anglo Norm ...

Parramatta Parramatta () is a suburb and major Central business district, commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district on the ban ...

and Bowenfels. It was in Parramatta where he married Matilda Susanna Weiss, daughter of a Sydney businessman, on 16 March 1858. In 1859 he was transferred to the

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

and

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line ...

circuit in

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

, but was recalled to Sydney in 1862. For three years Curnow was minister for the York street Church, the principal place of worship of the Sydney Wesleyans, and another three years were spent at Bourke Street. In 1868 he went to

Goulburn Goulburn ( ) is a regional city in the Southern Tablelands of the Australian state of New South Wales, approximately south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Canberra. It was proclaimed as Australia's first inland city through letters pate ...

, before returning to York street in 1871. In March 1874 he left for a trip to the United Kingdom. When he returned Curnow initially ministered in Forest Lodge, however his throat had become adversely affected by public speaking and he finally resigned in 1886.

Journalism

Curnow was joint editor of the ''Christian Advocate and Wesleyan Record'' with William Kelynack from 1864–68 and 1871–73. From 1873 he contributed articles to ''

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 ...

'', and

John Fairfax John Fairfax (24 October 1804 – 16 June 1877) was an English-born journalist, company director, politician, librarian and newspaper owner, known for the incorporation of the major newspapers of modern-day Australia. Early life Fairfax was bo ...

highly appreciated his work. On Curnow's return from abroad, in 1875, Fairfax invited him to become a member of the editorial staff. He edited ''

The Sydney Mail ''The Sydney Mail'' was an Australian magazine published weekly in Sydney. It was the weekly edition of ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' newspaper and ran from 1860 to 1938. History ''The Sydney Mail'' was first published on 17 July 1860 by J ...

'' for five months in 1885 and on 1 January 1886 he succeeded

Andrew Garran Andrew Garran (19 November 1825 – 6 June 1901), English-Australian journalist and politician, was the editor of the ''Sydney Morning Herald'' from 1873 to 1885. Biography Garran was born in London in 1825. He was educated at Hackney Gra ...

as editor of ''the Sydney Morning Herald''. He retired in 1903 in failing health, and died aged 70 of

cerebrovascular disease Cerebrovascular disease includes a variety of medical conditions that affect the blood vessels of the brain and the cerebral circulation. Arteries supplying oxygen and nutrients to the brain are often damaged or deformed in these disorders. Th ...

at his home at Clifton, Cambridge street, Enmore on 14 October 1903 and was buried in

Rookwood Cemetery Rookwood Cemetery (officially named Rookwood Necropolis) is a heritage-listed cemetery in Rookwood, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It is the largest necropolis in the Southern Hemisphere and is the world's largest remaining operating ...

Family

He was survived by his wife, two sons and two daughters. His wife, with

Maybanke Anderson Maybanke Susannah Anderson (nee Selfe and also known as Maybanke Wolstenholme; 16 February 1845 – 15 April 1927) was an Australian political reformer involved in women's suffrage and Australian federation. Early life Maybanke Selfe was bor ...

and

Louisa Macdonald Louisa Macdonald (10 December 1858 – 28 November 1949) was an educationist and women's suffragist. Early life and education Louisa Macdonald was born in 1858 in Arbroath, Scotland, the eleventh child of Ann (née Kid) and John Macdonald, to ...

, helped to establish free

kindergarten Kindergarten is a preschool educational approach based on playing, singing, practical activities such as drawing, and social interaction as part of the transition from home to school. Such institutions were originally made in the late 18th ce ...

s and was a founder of the Women's Literary Society and of

The Women's College, University of Sydney The Women's College is a residential college within the University of Sydney, in the suburb of Camperdown, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. It was opened in 1892. The Women's College is one of two all-female residential colleges at The Univ ...

. Curnow Place, in the Canberra suburb of Chisholm, is named in her honour.

References and notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Curnow, William 1832 births 1903 deaths Australian newspaper editors Australian federationists Cornish Methodists Australian people of Cornish descent British emigrants to Australia Clergy from Sydney 19th-century Methodists The Sydney Morning Herald editors Journalists from Sydney