Additional notes from the National Library of Australia (Accessed: 8 October 2010):
George William Rusden (1819-1903) came to Australia with his family in 1834 and worked for a number of years as a pastoralist. In 1849 he was appointed agent for the National Schools. In this capacity he rode 10,000 miles on horseback in Eastern Australia from Brisbane to Portland. In 1851 he became clerk in the office of the Victorian Colonial Secretary, and in 1856 Clerk of the Victorian Parliaments. He was a founding member of the Council of the University of Melbourne, a member of the Shakespeare Society and three years the Mayor of Brighton. In 1882 Rusden gave his library to Trinity College. He retired to England in 1882 and embarked on a life of writing, traveling and visiting his many friends. Rusden corresponded with many prominent and famous people, including novelists, Charles Dickens and Anthony Trollope, and General Charles Gordon. Rusden wrote many articles on topics, religious, political and literary. In 1883 Rusden published a History of Australia and a History of New Zealand. Rusden returned to Melbourne in 1893, and died in 1903.
