Guide to the Papers of John Kendrick Blogg, 1869-1992

Summary

Collection number:

MS 9473

Creator:

John Kendrick Blogg

Extent:

1.3 metres and (5 boxes, 1 folio box)

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of John Kendrick Blogg, National Library of Australia, MS 9473, [box number and series and/or file number]'.

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Available for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:

The collection, which includes letters, cuttings albums, poetry, photographs and family memorabilia, provides an interesting overview of Blogg's life and work. There are records of his achievements in woodcarving, and verse and hymn writing, as well as materials relating to his career as a manufacturing chemist. Many of the items were used in the writing of Marjorie Morgan's book Legacy in sculptured wood : an appreciation of the work of John Kendrick Blogg, 1851-1936, which she published in 1993.

The collection also reflects Blogg's enjoyment of letter writing, and the papers include correspondence with some prominent individuals who shared his interest in poetry. On this topic are letters from George Meredith, Rudyard Kipling, Alfred Deakin, Nettie Palmer, Archibald Strong and Sir George Knibbs. Other notable names appearing in the collection are Sir Russell Grimwade, Henry Bournes Higgins and Atlee Hunt.

Biographical Note:

Date	Event
1851	Born 19 March, Toronto, Canada
c. 1860s-77	Member of Cooks Methodist Church, Toronto, Canada
c. 1868	Studied chemistry at Toronto University
c. 1869	Junior partner in uncle's firm, J. Davids and Co., dispensing chemists, Toronto
1877	June Sailed to Australia from New York aboard the <em>Antelope</em>
1877	Arrived in Melbourne 18 September, taking up employment with Messrs Herbert Rocke and Company, wholesale druggists (later Rocke Tompsitt and Co.)
1878	Married Annie Matilda Derham, St Matthew's Anglican Church, Prahran
1884	In partnership with Herbert George Grist as manufacturing chemists, 161-163 Flinders Lane, Melbourne
1884	Oct. Registered own firm, J.K. Blogg and Company Limited, operating from factory in Moray Street, South Melbourne
1889	Name of firm changed to J.W. Tod Company Limited
1892	Company name changed to Blogg Bros., operating from 15-17 St James Street, Melbourne
1893	Death of first wife Annie; took up woodcarving as a hobby; resident of'Balmoral', Albany Crescent, Surrey Hills, Melbourne
1895-1900	Blogg Bros. appointed perfumers to Lord Brassey, Governor of Victoria
1897	Married Margaret Campbell Mackiehan
c. 1898	Blogg Bros Proprietary Limited moved to larger premises at 24-38 Spencer Street, Melbourne
1901	Carved a music cabinet, his earliest dated piece
c. 1910	Carved pulpit at St Stephen's Presbyterian Church, Surrey Hills; presented a panel of gum leaves to Lord Carmichael, Governor of Victoria
1912	Carved pulpit ornament for Chambers' Church (later the Scots' Church), Adelaide
1913-36	Member of Surrey Hills Bowling Club, where the Blogg Pairs competition was initiated in 1920
1914	Carving of wattle branch displayed in the window of Messrs Glen and Company, Collins Street, Melbourne; two pieces selected by Victorian Government for the Agent General's Office, London
1915	Carved pulpit panels at Centenary Methodist Church, Canterbury Road, Surrey Hills; prepared tablet for the Belgium Relief Fund Committee and carved a casket for King Albert of Belgium
1917	Fire at Bloggs Proprietary Limited premises, destroying factory
1918	Published <em>Leaside</em> (a tribute in verse to his childhood home in Toronto); visited Canada and United States to purchase new factory machinery; contributed carvings to the war memorial in Surrey Gardens, Surrey Hills
1920	A sculptured panel presented to the Prince of Wales (later King Edward VIII) during his visit to Melbourne
1920-24	Member and exhibitor with the Victorian Artists' Society
1927	Publication of his <em>Selected poems</em> by Disabled Men's Association
1929	Retired and devoted spare time to woodcarving; published article'The art of woodcarving' in <em>The Argus</em>, 28 September
1932	Last dated carved panel
1934	Unsuccessful entrant in the Victorian Centenary Poem Competition
1936	Died 23 September, Surrey Hills Examples of Blogg's work are held by the National Gallery of Australia, National Gallery of Victoria and Ballarat Fine Art Gallery, and in numerous family and private collections.

Provenance:

The papers of the industrial chemist, woodcarver and poet John Kendrick Blogg (1851-1936) were donated to the National Library by his grandson, Hugh Stevenson, in 1996.

Arrangement:

The papers were for many years in the possession of family members, most recently in the custody of Stevenson, the unofficial family historian. The resulting organisation of the collection, according to the various groupings of materials which had evolved over time, has largely been preserved in the arrangement of series.

Indexed terms

Names:

John Kendrick Blogg

Conditions Governing Access:

Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn2065877).

Conditions Governing Use:

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of John Kendrick Blogg, National Library of Australia, MS 9473, [box number and series and/or file number]'.

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

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