David Rowbotham

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For the English musician, see Dave Rowbotham.

David Rowbotham
BornDavid Harold Rowbotham
(1924-08-27)27 August 1924
Toowoomba, Queensland, Australia
Died6 October 2010(2010-10-06) (aged 86)
Brisbane, Queensland, Australia
OccupationPoet and journalist
Period1946-2010
Notable awards2007 Patrick White Award

David Harold Rowbotham AM (27 August 1924 – 6 October 2010) was an Australian poet and journalist.[1]

Early life

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Rowbotham was born in the Darling Downs of Queensland, in the city of Toowoomba.[2] He attended Toowoomba Grammar School and later studied at the University of Queensland and the University of Sydney.[3] During the Second World War, he served on the Pacific front.[1]

Literary career

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Rowbotham worked as a journalist for the Toowoomba Chronicle and Brisbane Courier-Mail from 1955 to 1964.[4] He lectured in English at the University of Queensland between 1965 and 1969, then became the literary critic for the Brisbane Courier-Mail from 1969 to 1980, and later its literary editor from 1980 to 1987.[3]

Though lyrical in form, Rowbotham's poems often focus on history. After Penguin published his Selected Poems in 1994, which covered fifty years of work, Rowbotham entered a productive late period that culminated in the well-received Poems for America in 2002. In 2005, Picaro Press's Wagtail series published a chapbook of Rowbotham's titled The Brown Island.[5]

Later life

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A friend and mentor to many Australian writers, Rowbotham also maintained wide international connections.[1]

He died on 6 October 2010.[6]

Awards and recognition

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Rowbotham was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 1991 for his service to literature.[7]

In 2007, he received the Patrick White Award, which was presented to him on 9 November 2007 in Brisbane.[8]

Bibliography

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  • Ploughman and Poet (1954)
  • Inland (1958)
  • All the Room (1964)
  • Bungalow and Hurricane (1967)
  • The Makers of the Ark (1970)
  • The Pen of Feathers (1971)
  • Maydays (1980)
  • Selected Poems (1994)
  • The Ebony Gates (1996)
  • Poems for America (2002)
  • The Brown Island (2005)
  • The Cave in the Sky (2005)
  • The Star of Engelmeer (2006)
  • Rogue Moons (2007)

References

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  1. ^ a b c "Austlit — David Rowbotham". Austlit. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  2. ^ David Rowbotham Archived 4 October 2006 at the Wayback Machine (Brisbane Writers' Festival) Accessed: 30 January 2007.
  3. ^ a b Australian Verse: An Illustrated Treasury, edited by Beatrice Davis, State Library of New South Wales Press, 1996
  4. ^ "David Rowbotham". Australian Poetry Library. Retrieved 17 January 2014.
  5. ^ "David Rowbotham - Bibliography". Austlit. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  6. ^ ""Poet's late flowering crowned a life's work"". The Australian, 8 October 2010, p14. ProQuest 756814860. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  7. ^ "David Harold Rowbotham". honours.pmc.gov.au. Archived from the original on 11 December 2019. Retrieved 11 December 2019.
  8. ^ "Austlit — Patrick White Award - Past Winners". Austlit. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
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