Person

Black, Alexander (1827 - 1897)

Born
25 May 1827
Arndilly, Scotland
Died
13 March 1897
St Kilda, Victoria, Australia
Occupation
Public servant and Surveyor

Summary

Alexander Black is commemorated in the Black-Allen Line, the straight-line border of Victoria and New South Wales between Forest Hill, the source of the Murray River, and Cape Howe. Black was one of the two surveyors engaged in this survey 1869-1871, one of the most strenuous and difficult undertaken because of the difficult terrain. He was at the time a Surveyor on the staff of the Victorian Geodetic Survey. Subsequently he served as District Surveyor in several districts of central and eastern Victoria, ultimately becoming Surveyor General. Black served on several boards and commissions of inquiry related to water supply and land survey; as Chairman of the Tender Board; and on the Board of Land and Works.

Details

Chronology

1852
Life event - Migrated to Victoria
1860 - 1871
Career position - Surveyor, Victorian Geodetic Survey
1871 - 1873
Career position - Acting District Surveyor, Bairnsdale
1873 - 1879
Career position - District Surveyor, Sandhurst
1879 - 1886
Career position - Assistant Surveyor General
1886 - 1892
Career position - President, Victorian Institute of Surveyors
1886 - 1893
Career position - Member, Victorian Board of Land and Works

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See also

  • Lomb, Nick, 'Australian solar eclipse expeditions: the voyage to Cape York in 1871', Journal of Astronomical History and Heritage, 19 (1) (2016), 79-95. Details
  • Lomb, Nick; and Stevenson, Toner eds, Eclipse chasers (Clayton South, Vic: CSIRO Publishing, 2023), 216 pp. Details

Helen Cohn

EOAS ID: biogs/P005683b.htm

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