Person
Currie, John Lang (1818 - 1898)
- Born
- 17 November 1818
Yarrow, Selkirkshire, Scotland - Died
- 11 March 1898
St Kilda, Victoria, Australia - Occupation
- Pastoralist
Summary
John Currie is known as the father of the merino wool industry in Victoria and Australia as a whole. Through trial and error, hard work and perseverance, Currie established the Larra luster merino wool which was unequalled by any other wool types produced in Victoria. It was longer, finer and glossier then other wools and its density on the sheep was unmatched. The Larra luster merino even received the tag of 'perfect' at a London wool auction. His success led other farmers throughout Australia to start afresh, so Currie's sheep were in high demand. His sheep were even exported to South Africa and the United States of America. Between 1846 and 1879, Currie's sheep stocks rose from 6,161 to 34,277.
Details
Chronology
- 1841
- Life event - Migrated to Australia (Port Phillip)
- 1844
- Career position - Bought 1500 sheep and 32,000-acre (12,950 ha) Larra run near Camperdown in Victoria
- 1844
- Career position - Bought the 32,000-acre (12,950 ha) Larra run near Camperdown and 1500 sheep
- 1860s
- Career position - Larra lustre merino established
- 1863
- Career position - Elected to the Camperdown Shire Council
- 1878
- Life event - Donated £500 to Ormond College at the University of Melbourne
- 1879
- Career position - Director of the Australian Frozen Export Co.
- 1881
- Career position - Bought Telemon station in New South Wales
Archival resources
State Library of Victoria, Australian Manuscripts Collection
- John Lang Currie - Records, 1856 - 1898; State Library of Victoria, Australian Manuscripts Collection. Details
Published resources
Book Sections
- Hone, J. Ann, 'Currie, John Lang (1818-1898)' in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Douglas Pike, ed., vol. 3 (Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1969), pp. 510-511. http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A030478b.htm. Details
Resources
- Wikidata, http://www.wikidata.org/entity/Q6243965. Details
- VIAF - Virtual International Authority File, OCLC, https://viaf.org/viaf/93188889. Details
- 'Currie, J L (1818-1898)', Trove, National Library of Australia, 2009, https://nla.gov.au/nla.party-559485. Details
McCarthy, G.J.
Created: 20 October 1993, Last modified: 28 February 2018
- Foundation Supporter - Committee to Review Australian Studies in Tertiary Education