Ebenezer Syme (15 September 1825 – 13 March 1860) was a Scottish-Australian journalist, proprietor and manager of ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

''. Syme was born at

North Berwick North Berwick (; gd, Bearaig a Tuath) is a seaside town A seaside resort is a town, village, or hotel that serves as a vacation resort and is located on a coast. Sometimes the concept includes an aspect of official accreditation based on th ...

, Scotland, third son of George Alexander Syme, schoolmaster, and his wife Jean, ''née'' Mitchell. Ebenezer Syme's younger brother was

David Syme David Syme (2 October 1827 – 14 February 1908) was a Scottish-Australian newspaper proprietor of ''The Age'' and regarded as "the father of protection in Australia" who had immense influence in the Government of Victoria.C. E. Sayers,Syme, Da ...

. Ebenezer studied

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

at the

University of St Andrews (Aien aristeuein) , motto_lang = grc , mottoeng = Ever to ExcelorEver to be the Best , established = , type = Public research university Ancient university , endowment ...

to be educated for the ministry but finding difficulties in accepting the creeds of the day became an unattached evangelist, working in Liverpool, Manchester, other north country industrial towns and in Scotland. Syme also began to write for the reviews and succeeded George Eliot as assistant editor of the ''

Westminster Review The ''Westminster Review'' was a quarterly British publication. Established in 1823 as the official organ of the Philosophical Radicals, it was published from 1824 to 1914. James Mill was one of the driving forces behind the liberal journal until ...

''. Syme married Jane Hilton, ''née'' Rowan, of Manchester, on 21 April 1848. In April 1853, partly for health reasons, Syme, his wife and three young sons sailed for Australia in the ''Abdalla''. They landed in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

on 17 July 1853 and Syme soon found work as a journalist. When the ''

Age Age or AGE may refer to: Time and its effects * Age, the amount of time someone or something has been alive or has existed ** East Asian age reckoning, an Asian system of marking age starting at 1 * Ageing or aging, the process of becoming older ...

'' was founded in 1854 Syme joined the staff and two years later, the paper being in difficulties, it was sold to him and his brother, David. Ebenezer Syme was elected member for

Loddon Loddon may refer to: *Loddon, Norfolk in England, UK *Shire of Loddon in Victoria, Australia (since 1995) **Bridgewater On Loddon, Victoria in Australia *River Loddon, flows into the River Thames near Reading *Loddon River, flows north from south of ...

in November 1856 in the

Legislative Assembly of Victoria The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presiding ...

, but as this conflicted with his journalistic work he did not stand again when his term expired in 1859. Syme joined in the struggle for the opening up of the lands. Syme's health, however, began to suffer and he died after a lingering illness on 13 March 1860. He was survived by his wife, four sons and a daughter; they all returned to England, but all the children later returned to Victoria. One son, Joseph Cowen Syme, was for many years part proprietor and manager of ''The Age''. A granddaughter,

Eveline Winifred Syme Eveline Syme (26 October 1888 – 6 June 1961) was an Australian artist associated with the Grosvenor School of Modern Art, and an advocate for women's post-secondary education. Early life Eveline Winifred Syme was born in Thames Ditton, Surrey, ...

(1888–1961), was a notable Australian artist. His most notable legacy, ''The Age,'' would remain in his family's hands until 1983.

References

;Footnotes ;Bibliography * *

External links

Joseph Cowen Syme (1852-1916)
Gravesite at Brighton General Cemetery (Vic)
Sir Geoffrey Syme
"Sir Geoffrey Syme Journalist & Managing Editor of ''The Age'' from 1908 until 1942" {{DEFAULTSORT:Syme 1825 births 1860 deaths Journalists from Melbourne Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Scottish emigrants to colonial Australia Alumni of the University of St Andrews 19th-century Australian journalists 19th-century Australian male writers 19th-century male writers 19th-century Australian politicians Australian male journalists People from North Berwick