Judith M Brown Judith M Brown

Australian published non-fiction writer and historian

Judith was born in Adelaide, South Australia. Before her marriage, she travelled for twelve years working everywhere from London to the relative isolation of the Australian bush.

She presented a weekly programme on ABS-2 television for two years and broadcast on radio 5DN for three years, researching and presenting programmes that covered a broad spectrum including current affairs, politics and history.

Her books on South Australian history are in constant use for research, and she holds a Bachelor of Arts degree with Honours in French Studies from the University of Adelaide.

Judith continues her reading and writing amidst games of petanque. She relishes competition and in 2007 and 2008 proudly donned "the green and gold" to represent Australia against New Zealand.

Adelaide historian Judith Brown provides a vivid link with history … She helps the reader to feel the drama, tragedy, poignancy and humour that, in all times and places, is today’s pattern for tomorrow. The Adelaide Advertiser

Books

Place of Pines by Judith M. BrownPlace of Pines

Pub. 2012

Place of Pines begins in England in 1913, sweeps through forty years covering two world wars, the Depression in Australia and the Resistance movement in France during the Second World War, before ending back in England. It took Judith Brown seven years to research and write and there is a seven-page bibliography for those wanting more information. There is also a Glossary for those unfamiliar with some Australian words. It is a meticulously researched historical romance.

Read Place of Pines on Kindle »

I got so involved with the characters and their adventures that I simply couldn’t put it down. I read it in bed, at the breakfast table, in the bath, on the beach … and I especially loved learning how the pioneer settlers in the early 20th Century coped with the changes they found after leaving Europe. I was very sorry to reach the end. Mary S. Lovell, leading English biographer and author of The Sound of Wings - a biography of Amelia Earhart and The Churchills

Town Life in Pioneer South Australia by Judith M. BrownTown Life in Pioneer South Australia

The companion volume to Country Life in Pioneer Australia, commissioned by publisher Rigby's due to the success of the former volume, and once again produced by the talented team of author Judith Brown and photographer Barbara Mullins. The book focuses on houses in the city and suburbs and their diverse owners (each with a different occupation) to again depict the fascinating spectrum of life in the pioneer era.

Country Life in Pioneer South Australia by Judith M. BrownCountry Life in Pioneer South Australia

A beautiful coffee-table book recapturing the colonial days of South Australia. The author, Judith Brown, reveals the different ways of life of the owners of a fascinating diversity of pioneer houses illustrated in fine colour photographs by Barbara Mullins. Judith's research uncovered homes still occupied and others abandoned, and reveals the lives of their tenacious inhabitants, including a whaler, a pastoralist, a preacher, a miner, and some of the women of South Australia.

Adelaide historian Judith Brown provides a vivid link with history in her most recent book ... She helps the reader to feel the drama, tragedy, poignancy and humour that, in all times and places, is today's pattern for tomorrow. The Advertiser, Adelaide

Augustus Short, DD, Bishop of Adelaide by Judith M. BrownAugustus Short, DD, Bishop of Adelaide

A vivid account of the life of the first bishop of the Anglican see of Adelaide, Augustus Short DD, who was also the first Vice-Chancellor of the University of Adelaide. The author describes the history of the Anglican Church in South Australia, and the vital role of the first bishop in laying the foundations of the diocese and its institutions. The biography also reveals with keen detail the character of Dr. Short, whether travelling horseback on missionary tours throughout the Outback of the State, or in fiery debate with the Anglican establishment of the time.

Here is a factual account of religious pioneering far removed from weak tea and gentle bickering within cloistered walls. Sunday Mail, Adelaide
This is a thorough examination of the field and will no doubt become the standard reference. The Age, Melbourne
Mrs. Judith Brown ... has written a vivid and interesting account of Bishop Short, which is enlivened by the use of family correspondence ... I heartily commend the book to you all. The Adelaide Church Guardian
It is a book which will not only heighten the admiration of SA Anglicans for their first bishop but also takes readers of any creed on an interesting journey through the early days of life in the city and Outback. The Advertiser, Adelaide

The Almonds of Walkerville by Judith M. BrownThe Almonds of Walkerville

The story of the author's love affair with a 140 year-old house, The Almonds, which she purchased with her husband in 1969, and which subsequently gained a highly significant building classification from the National Trust of South Australia. Through family letters, diaries, documents, memoirs and photographs, Judith Brown has pieced together the lives of each member of the Belt family, who lived in The Almonds, Walkerville, for 93 years. Their both stoic and eccentric characters are revealed with affection. She also provides a well-documented picture of life in colonial Adelaide and the village and village-folk of Walkerville.

The author is obviously steeped in love for the past in Australia. Stock Journal, Adelaide
Her book is not only a historical document, but a poignant story of a passing parade of people warmly and often humourously brought to life through their letters and diaries. (Sunday) Mail Magazine, Adelaide
Her book is an unabashed charmer, lively, perceptive and intelligently uninhibited. The Advertiser, Adelaide
I have been so charmed by a tale well told that I cannot help but wonder why all historical research does not hold the reader with equal strength. Mr. Dean Berry, President of the National Trust of South Australia
The result ... is a very readable book, full of local interest, but ... it is selling well in other States as well as in South Australia.The Australian Women's Weekly

Contributions

Australian Dictionary of Biography Volume 18 1981-1990 L-Z with a contribution by Judith M. BrownAustralian Dictionary of Biography Volume 18 1981-1990 L-Z

ed. M. Nolan, Pub. Melbourne University Press 2012

This is the 18th volume of this series which first came out in 1966 when Douglas Pike was General Editor. It is a valuable source of history, covering the diverse lives of farmers, stockmen, judges, artists and politicians, among others.

Judith’s contribution is on the life of Senator Keith Cameron Wilson (later Sir Keith), whom Judith remembers from her youth as a kind and courteous neighbour.

Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate Vol.II with a contribution by Judith M. BrownBiographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate Vol.II

ed. A. Millar, Pub. June 2004

This second volume of The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate covers the period from 1929 to 1962. This volume contains individual articles on 103 male senators, one woman and the three clerks who served them. Judith Brown writes on the careers of Alexander John McLachlan and Sir Keith Cameron Wilson. The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate is compiled and edited in the Biographical Dictionary Unit in the Department of the Senate, Parliament House, Canberra.

Australian Biographical and Genealogical Record 1842-1899 Vol.3 with a contribution by Judith M. BrownAustralian Biographical and Genealogical Record 1842-1899 Vol.3

Published in 1989 and one of four volumes of 'pocket biographies' aiming to document all those persons born or who arrived in Australia before 1842. This project was undertaken by the Australian Biographical and Genealogical Record, a non-profit, independent research unit, established in 1982 to coordinate and compile biographical and genealogical details about early Australians. Judith Brown wrote on Reverend Matthew Henry Hodge, her great-grandfather, and the first Congregational Minister at Port Adelaide.

Australian Dictionary of Biography Vol. 9, 1891-1939 by Judith M. BrownAustralian Dictionary of Biography Vol. 9, 1891-1939

Gil-Las eds. B. Nairn and G. Serle; pub. Melbourne University Press; Cambridge University Press, 1983

Judith Brown's contribution told of the life of NSW-born William Austin Horn, who married Nelly Belt of The Almonds (the author's earlier home), but was more widely known as financer of the Horn Scientific Expedition to the Macdonald Ranges in 1894, having made his money as Director of the Silverton mine.

Historic Homesteads of Australia Vol.II  with a contribution by Judith M. BrownHistoric Homesteads of Australia Vol.II

ed. Australian Council of National Trust, pub. National Trusts of Australia, 1976

Another magnificent publication introducing Australia's most historic homesteads, with hundreds of photographs including colour plates. Judith Brown contributed an article on Para Para, the 1851-built home of The Hon. Walter Duffield. This historic house was twice visited by Queen Victoria's son, the Duke of Edinburgh: once to walk through the gardens, and the second time in 1869 to lunch.

The Great Book of Australian Horses with contributions by Judith M. BrownThe Great Book of Australian Horses

A coffee-table book of 26 chapters, in which Judith Brown interviews racing trainer extraordinaire Bart Cummings, discusses Harness Racing in Australia, and describes how a farrier shoes a horse. Further chapters present how-to advice for dressage, polocrosse, hunting and trotting, and articles on Australian Horses at War and Mounted Police in Australia. Other noted South Australian contributors include Margaret Clarke, Tom Roberts and Neville Sprod. Photographs are by Peter Gower.

Historic Houses of Australia  with contributions by Judith M. BrownHistoric Houses of Australia

This book documents 37 houses of quality and individuality, whether Georgian, Gothic, or High Victorian, that have all contributed to a recognisably Australian type of architecture. The book tells of the people who built the houses as well as showing the details of design and workmanship. Judith Brown contributes articles on Ayers House, Adelaide, home of the seven-time Premier of South Australia, Sir Henry Ayers, and The Almonds, Walkerville. The book was published in October 1974 by Cassell Australia, in conjunction with the Australian Council of National Trusts.

© 2012–2018 Judith M Brown. All rights reserved.