George Gordon McCrae
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George Gordon McCrae | |
|---|---|
| Born | 29 May 1833 Leith, Scotland |
| Died | 15 August 1927 (aged 94) Hawthorn, Australia |
| Children | 6, including Hugh |
| Mother | Georgiana McCrae |
| Writing career | |
| Genre | Poetry |
| Notable works | Two Old Men's Tales of Love and War |
George Gordon McCrae (29 May 1833 – 15 August 1927) was an Australian poet.[1]
George Gordon McCrae was born in Leith, Scotland on 29 May 1833. His father was Andrew Murison McCrae, a writer and his mother was Georgiana McCrae, a painter. McCrae attended a preparatory school in London, and later received lessons from his mother. Georgiana and her four sons emigrated to Melbourne in 1841, following her husband who had emigrated in 1839.[2]
Career
After a few years as a surveyor, McCrae joined the Victorian Government service, eventually becoming Deputy Registrar-General, and also a prominent figure in literary circles.[2] Most of his leisure time was spent in writing. His first published work was Two Old Men's Tales of Love and War (London, 1865).[2]
His son Hugh McCrae, also a poet, produced a volume of memoirs (My Father and My Father's Friends) about George and his association with such literary figures as Henry Kendall, Adam Lindsay Gordon, Richard Henry Horne and Marcus Clarke.[2]
McCrae wrote novels, stories, poetry, and travel sketches, and illustrated books. After his retirement, unpublished manuscripts entitled 'Reminiscences—Experiences not Exploits' contain detailed descriptions of events from his youth and present a record of the early European part of Melbourne country-side.[2]
Late life
McCrae died 15 August 1927 at Hawthorn in Melbourne, survived by four of his six children, including Dorothy Frances Perry, also an author.[2]
Bibliography
- Two Old Men's Tales of Love and War (1865)
- The Story of Balladeadro (1867)
- Mamba, the Bright-Eyed: an Aboriginal Reminiscence (1867)
- The Man in the Iron Mask (1873)
- The Fleet and Convoy (1915)
- John Rous (1918)
