Education and Journalism in Nineteenth Century Charters Towers

Abstract

The colonial editor enjoyed a privileged position in nineteenth century Queensland, and through the newspaper editorial provided a regular social and political commentary. An analysis of the character and influences of an editor provides valuable insights into the forces that shaped the community and, at times, the colony. In the second half of the nineteenth century a popular vocation for many men with at least a passing education was journalism. Their creative spirits were to find an outlet in the plethora of provincial papers. In this whirlwind of journals, papers, and issues, it was Thadeus O'Kane of Charters Towers who stood head and shoulders above his scribbler peers. O'Kane was to be an inspiration to his colonial colleagues as a provincial catalyst for polemical discussions on the many popular political and social treatises and ideas of the late nineteenth century.