William Bramwell Withers

historian

William Bramwell Withers (27 July 1823 – 14 July 1913) was a journalist and novelist best known for writing the first history of Ballarat, Victoria. Born in England, Withers moved to the Colony of Natal in 1849 and contributed to local newspapers. He moved to Victoria in 1852, working odd jobs before becoming a reporter for the Argus and the Herald in Melbourne.

Quotes

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  • Potent as was the wonderful lamp of Aladdin, and magnificent as were its successes, the power of gold has equalled in its marvellous effects all that the warm orient fancy has pictured for us in the Arabian Nights. Gold has done even more than ever mere magician achieved. It certainly has operated magically in Australia, and in no part of the country has it created greater marvels than in Ballarat ...
    • A History of Ballarat (1870), p. 18
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