Bernard Cronin
Encyclopedia
Bernard Cronin was an author and journalist.
Bernard Cronin was born on the 18th March 1884 in Ealing
, Middlesex
, England
, second son of Charles Frederick Cronin (1859–1887), an auctioneer, and Laura née Marshall (1850–1934). His father was advised to go to Australia for the sake of his health. Charles and his wife set off in 1886, leaving Bernard and his brother in England in the care of their grandmother and aunts. In Mitcham, South Australia
, Bernard's father succumbed to his illness and died. Laura returned to London and in 1889 married Frederick Cecil Browne, who had taken her under his wing during her husband's illness and accompanied her back to England, and the two of them returned to Australia
in the same year, accompanied by Bernard's brother Laurence Kimberley. Bernard himself followed them to Australia at the age of six in 1890 in the care of the captain of RMS Austral. During the voyage the young Bernard nearly accidentally killed an able seaman who was painting the ship's side whilst holding on to the deck with one hand. Young Bernard jumped on the man's hand 'just to see what happened'. The man let go, but, happily, was rescued.
He emerged from his education in 1901 with a diploma in agriculture, and was indeed the first recipient of the Gold Medal, from the Dookie
Agricultural College, now part of the Goulburn Ovens Institute of Technical and Further Education
in Victoria
and still Australia's premier agricultural college. In 1908 he joined his brother Laurie (also a graduate of Dookie Agricultural College) in a cattle-farming venture in Tasmania which, due to the forestation and other natural conditions which had defeated many settlers before them, was not successful.
He married a farmer's daughter, Victoria Maud Ferres, on 11 March 1908. In 1913 he went back to Melbourne, where he worked as a salesman before getting a job as a clerk in the Department of the Navy and began to devote his spare time to writing. He published his first novel The Coastlanders, set in Tasmania, in 1918. He went on to write numerous novels, short stories, poems and a radio play, Stampede (1937), using his own name and a number of pseudonyms, such as Dennis Adair, Hugh Bohun, Wallace Dixon, Tas East and Eric North. He also jointly used the pseudonym Stephen Grey when writing with Capel Boake (the pseudonym of Doris Boake Kerr).
In the 1920s Cronin worked for the Melbourne Herald
and in the 1950s he was a contributor to the Melbourne Sun
. During World War II
he worked as a publicity censor in Victoria and Western Australia
.
In 1920 Cronin was one of the co-founders of the Old Derelicts' Club for struggling authors and writers. This in turn became the Society of Australian Authors in 1927, of which Cronin was its first president. This society was wound up in 1936 because, in Cronin's words, it was becoming 'infiltrated by politics'. In 1933 he founded the Quill Club, and was a long term member of the International PEN
Club (Melbourne) and was granted life membership in 1961.
He was a keen student of The Bible and supporter of the British-Israelist
movement. In his later life he took up woodcarving and painting. He died at his home in East Camberwell, Victoria
on 9 June 1968 and was buried in Springvale Cemetery.
Cronin Street in McKellar
, a suburb of Canberra
, is named after him and is one of a number of streets in the area named after Australian authors.
Bernard Cronin was born on the 18th March 1884 in Ealing
Ealing
Ealing is a suburban area of west London, England and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Ealing. It is located west of Charing Cross and around from the City of London. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically a rural village...
, Middlesex
Middlesex
Middlesex is one of the historic counties of England and the second smallest by area. The low-lying county contained the wealthy and politically independent City of London on its southern boundary and was dominated by it from a very early time...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, second son of Charles Frederick Cronin (1859–1887), an auctioneer, and Laura née Marshall (1850–1934). His father was advised to go to Australia for the sake of his health. Charles and his wife set off in 1886, leaving Bernard and his brother in England in the care of their grandmother and aunts. In Mitcham, South Australia
Mitcham, South Australia
Mitcham is a suburb of Adelaide in the City of Mitcham.Created as a village separate from Adelaide , it was ancillary to a sheep station at Brown Hill Creek belonging to the South Australia Company. Prior to European settlement the area was inhabited by the Kaurna aboriginal people...
, Bernard's father succumbed to his illness and died. Laura returned to London and in 1889 married Frederick Cecil Browne, who had taken her under his wing during her husband's illness and accompanied her back to England, and the two of them returned to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
in the same year, accompanied by Bernard's brother Laurence Kimberley. Bernard himself followed them to Australia at the age of six in 1890 in the care of the captain of RMS Austral. During the voyage the young Bernard nearly accidentally killed an able seaman who was painting the ship's side whilst holding on to the deck with one hand. Young Bernard jumped on the man's hand 'just to see what happened'. The man let go, but, happily, was rescued.
He emerged from his education in 1901 with a diploma in agriculture, and was indeed the first recipient of the Gold Medal, from the Dookie
Dookie, Victoria
Dookie is a town in the Goulburn Valley region of Victoria, Australia. It is situated in a valley between Mount Major and Mount Saddleback. Dookie is a farming community. At the 2006 census, Dookie had a population of 286....
Agricultural College, now part of the Goulburn Ovens Institute of Technical and Further Education
Goulburn Ovens Institute of TAFE
Goulburn Ovens Institute of TAFE, also known as GOTAFE, is a Technical and Further Education institute located in the north east region of Victoria, Australia based on the Goulburn and Ovens rivers, and is the largest regional TAFE in Victoria, and a specialist centre for food processing, equine...
in Victoria
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
and still Australia's premier agricultural college. In 1908 he joined his brother Laurie (also a graduate of Dookie Agricultural College) in a cattle-farming venture in Tasmania which, due to the forestation and other natural conditions which had defeated many settlers before them, was not successful.
He married a farmer's daughter, Victoria Maud Ferres, on 11 March 1908. In 1913 he went back to Melbourne, where he worked as a salesman before getting a job as a clerk in the Department of the Navy and began to devote his spare time to writing. He published his first novel The Coastlanders, set in Tasmania, in 1918. He went on to write numerous novels, short stories, poems and a radio play, Stampede (1937), using his own name and a number of pseudonyms, such as Dennis Adair, Hugh Bohun, Wallace Dixon, Tas East and Eric North. He also jointly used the pseudonym Stephen Grey when writing with Capel Boake (the pseudonym of Doris Boake Kerr).
In the 1920s Cronin worked for the Melbourne Herald
The Herald (Melbourne)
The Herald was a broadsheet newspaper published in Melbourne, Australia from 1840 to 1990.The Port Phillip Herald was first published as a semi-weekly newspaper on 3 January 1840 from a weatherboard shack in Collins Street. It was the fourth newspaper to start in Melbourne.The paper took its name...
and in the 1950s he was a contributor to the Melbourne Sun
The Sun News-Pictorial
The Sun News-Pictorial, commonly known as The Sun, was a morning daily tabloid newspaper in Melbourne, Australia established in 1922 and closed in 1990.It was part of The Herald and Weekly Times Ltd stable of Melbourne newspapers...
. During World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
he worked as a publicity censor in Victoria and Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
In 1920 Cronin was one of the co-founders of the Old Derelicts' Club for struggling authors and writers. This in turn became the Society of Australian Authors in 1927, of which Cronin was its first president. This society was wound up in 1936 because, in Cronin's words, it was becoming 'infiltrated by politics'. In 1933 he founded the Quill Club, and was a long term member of the International PEN
International PEN
PEN International , the worldwide association of writers, was founded in London in 1921 to promote friendship and intellectual co-operation among writers everywhere....
Club (Melbourne) and was granted life membership in 1961.
He was a keen student of The Bible and supporter of the British-Israelist
British Israelism
British Israelism is the belief that people of Western European descent, particularly those in Great Britain, are the direct lineal descendants of the Ten Lost Tribes of Israel. The concept often includes the belief that the British Royal Family is directly descended from the line of King David...
movement. In his later life he took up woodcarving and painting. He died at his home in East Camberwell, Victoria
Camberwell, Victoria
Camberwell is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 9 km east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Boroondara. At the 2006 Census, Camberwell had a population of 19,637....
on 9 June 1968 and was buried in Springvale Cemetery.
Cronin Street in McKellar
McKellar, Australian Capital Territory
McKellar is a residential suburb of Canberra, Australia in the Belconnen district. The suburb is named after Colin McKellar who was Minister for Repatriation from 1964-70. The suburb name was gazetted on 15 January 1974...
, a suburb of Canberra
Canberra
Canberra is the capital city of Australia. With a population of over 345,000, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The city is located at the northern end of the Australian Capital Territory , south-west of Sydney, and north-east of Melbourne...
, is named after him and is one of a number of streets in the area named after Australian authors.
Partial bibliography
- The Flame: A Story of What Might Have Been (as Eric North) (1916)
- The Coastlanders (1918)
- Timber Wolves (1920)
- Bluff Stakes (1922)
- Kangaroo Rhymes (with Capel Boake as Stephen Gray) (1922)
- Salvage (1923)
- Toad (1924, serially in the Melbourne Herald) (also published, with some changes, as The Green Flame (as Eric North) in A. MerrittA. MerrittAbraham Grace Merritt — known by his byline, A. Merritt — was an American editor and author of works of fantastic fiction.-Life:...
's Fantasy Magazine: Vol. 1, No. 4 July 1950) - The Satyr (1924, The Melbourne Herald)
- Red Dawson (1927)
- White Gold (1927)
- Dragonfly (1928)
- The Treasure of the Tropics (1928)
- Bracken (1929)
- Romance of the Licensing Court (1930)
- From the Casebooks of Dr. Sars (1930)
- The Golden Skull (Illustrated by Robert Strange, 3 November 1931 in ChumsChums (paper)Chums was a boys' weekly newspaper started in 1892 that was the official paper of the British Boy Scouts and British Boys' Naval Brigade . The publisher also gathered the weekly paper into monthly and annual editions...
magazine, No. 2043 Vol. 40, pp. 349–351) - Bushranging Silhouettes. Tales (1932) (with Arthur Russell)
- The Sow's Ear (1933)
- Black Tragedy (as Hugh Bohun) (c. 1933)
- The Valley of Stars (1934)
- The Murchison Murders (1934) (editor) - Author: Arthur UpfieldArthur UpfieldArthur William Upfield was an Australian writer, best known for his works of detective fiction featuring Detective Inspector Napoleon Bonaparte of the Queensland Police Force, a half-caste Aborigine....
- The Need for Love (1935) (editor) - Author: Elizabeth Powell
- The Epic of Mr. Plate (5 August 1935 in The Sydney MailThe Sydney MailThe Sydney Mail was an Australian magazine published weekly in Sydney. The weekly edition of The Sydney Morning Herald newspaper, it ran from 1860 to 1938....
, pp. 12–14) - Stampede (1937), a radio play
- Story Writing (1937)
- Who Killed Marie Westhoven? (as Eric North) (bet. 1921 & 1940)
- Death Rides the Desert. A Novel (1940) (as Dennis Adair)
- The Shadows Mystery (1944)
- How Runs the Road (1948)
- The Shadows Mystery (1950)
- Three Against The Stars (as Eric North in Fantastic Novels Magazine: Vol. 4, No 1) (May 1950)
- National Theatre Arts Festival: ballet, opera, drama (1951) (editor)
- The Ant Men (as Eric North) (1953)
- Star Gem (Eric North?) (1954)
- A Chip On My Shoulder (as Eric North) (1955)
- The Name is Smith (as Eric North) (1957 (US))
- The Second Sphere (as Eric North in Fantastic UniverseFantastic UniverseFantastic Universe was a U.S. science fiction magazine which began publishing in the 1950s. It ran for 69 issues, from June 1953 to March 1960, under two different publishers. It was part of the explosion of science fiction magazine publishing in the 1950s in the United States, and was moderately...
Science Fiction magazine) (October 1956) - Nobody Stops Me (as Eric North) (1960)
- The North Wind (song - words by Bernard Cronin, music by Mabel Down)
- Papers (1890–1969)