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Sir Edward Charles Stirling (8 September 1848 – 20 March 1919) was an Australian
anthropologist An anthropologist is a scientist engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropologists study aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms, values ...
and the first professor of physiology at the
University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...
.


Early life

Stirling was born at "The Lodge"
Strathalbyn, South Australia Strathalbyn is a town in South Australia, in the Alexandrina Council. In 2016, the town had a population of approximately 6,500. Location Strathalbyn is 60 km southeast of Adelaide on the banks of the River Angas, at the southeastern edge o ...
, the eldest son of the Hon. Edward Stirling and his wife Harriett, ''née'' TaylorHans Mincham
'Stirling, Edward (1804–1873)'
Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...
, Volume 6, Melbourne University Press, 1976, pp 200–201.
His father was the illegitimate child of a Scottish planter in Jamaica and an unknown woman of colour. He was a partner in Elder Stirling and Company before that firm became Elder Smith and Company, was a nominated member of the 1855
Legislative Council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...
, and was an elected member of the 1857 Legislative Council. Edward Snr. migrated to South Australia after receiving £1000 from his father, Archibald, who had owned slaves in
Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...
. Stirling was educated at
St Peter's College, Adelaide St Peter's College (officially The Anglican Church of Australia Collegiate School of Saint Peter, but commonly known as Saints) is an Private school, independent Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Primary school, primary and Secondary school ...
, and
Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...
, where he graduated
B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...
with honours in natural science in 1869,
M.A. A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...
and M.B. in 1872, and
M.D. A Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated MD, from the Latin ) is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the ''MD'' denotes a professional degree of physician. This ge ...
in 1880. Stirling was admitted to the
Fellowship of the Royal College of Surgeons Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (FRCS) is a professional qualification to practise as a senior surgeon in Ireland or the United Kingdom. It is bestowed on an intercollegiate basis by the four Royal Colleges of Surgeons (the Roya ...
(FRCS) in 1874.


Career

Stirling was appointed house surgeon at
St George's Hospital St George's Hospital is a large teaching hospital in Tooting, London. Founded in 1733, it is one of the UK's largest teaching hospitals. It is run by the St George's University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. It shares its main hospital site i ...
, London, and in early 1878 became assistant surgeon and lecturer on physiology and operative surgery. Stirling returned to South Australia in 1875 and on 27 June 1877 married Jane, eldest daughter of Joseph Gilbert, and took his new wife to London for medical treatment. Their daughter Jane Harriet was born in London in April 1878. Stirling returned to
Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...
for good in 1881, and in the following year was appointed lecturer in physiology at the
University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...
where he helped found the medical school. In 1884 Stirling was elected to the
South Australian Legislative Assembly The House of Assembly (also known as the lower house) is one of two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia, the other being the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assemb ...
for
North Adelaide North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct (Australia), precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands. Laid out in a grid plan in three section ...
and sat for three years. There he proved an innovator and speaker for the rights of women, becoming the first person in Australasia to introduce a bill for women's suffrage. On 22 July 1885, the year after his election, he proposed the following motion for
women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...
: 'That in the opinion of this House, women… who fulfil the conditions and possess the qualifications on which the parliamentary franchise for the Legislative Council is granted to men, shall, like them, be admitted to the franchise for both Houses of Parliament.' He then expanded on his argument for women's suffrage using the following quote from
Plato Plato ( ; Greek language, Greek: , ; born  BC, died 348/347 BC) was an ancient Greek philosopher of the Classical Greece, Classical period who is considered a foundational thinker in Western philosophy and an innovator of the writte ...
: 'There is no natural difference between the sexes except in strength and both should equally participate in the Government of the State.' By this time he had four daughters of his own, and he wanted them to grow up in a fairer society. Then in 1886 he introduced a formal bill for women's suffrage into the South Australian parliament. Although this bill was not passed, a few years later South Australia was the first of the Australian colonies to give women the vote. Not only was Stirling committed to the political rights of women, but he also believed in their right to a proper education. He lectured at the
Advanced School for Girls The Advanced School for Girls was a South Australian State school whose purpose was to prepare girls to qualify for entry to the University of Adelaide. Founded in 1879, the school merged with Adelaide High School in 1907. History From its inc ...
, and also campaigned for women to be admitted to Adelaide University's School of Medicine. His own five daughters benefited from an excellent education, and Harriet (1878–1943) went on to earn an OBE for her work with mothers and children, and Jane (1881–1966) earned a
Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...
degree from Adelaide University and later played viola in the South Australian Orchestra. Edward Charles Stirling was appointed the first President of the State Children's Council by its founder
Catherine Helen Spence Catherine Helen Spence (31 October 1825 – 3 April 1910) was a Scottish-born Australian author, teacher, journalist, politician, leading suffragist, and Georgist. Spence was also a minister of religion and social worker, and supporter of el ...
. A later President was his oldest daughter Harriet (OBE), who also founded the Mothers and Babies Health Association with
Helen Mayo Helen Mary Mayo (1 October 1878 – 13 November 1967) was an Australian medical doctor and medical educator, born and raised in Adelaide. In 1896, she enrolled at the University of Adelaide, where she studied medicine. After graduating, Mayo ...
. Stirling had other interests and duties. He was chairman of the
South Australian Museum The South Australian Museum is a natural history museum and research institution in Adelaide, South Australia, founded in 1856 and owned by the Government of South Australia. It occupies a complex of buildings on North Terrace in the cultur ...
committee in 1884–5 and in 1889 became honorary director of the museum. In 1890 he went overland with South Australia's Governor, Lord Kintore, from
Port Darwin Port Darwin is the port in Darwin, Northern Territory, and is the most northerly port in Australia. The port has operated in a number of locations, including Stokes Hill Wharf, Cullen Bay, and East Arm Wharf. Since 2015, the port has bee ...
to Adelaide and collected much flora and fauna including several specimens of the
marsupial mole Marsupial moles, the Notoryctidae family, are two species of highly specialized marsupial mammals that are found in the Australian interior. They are small burrowing marsupials that anatomically converge on fossorial placental mammals, such as ...
''
Notoryctes typhlops The southern marsupial mole (''Notoryctes typhlops''), also known as the itjaritjari () or itjari-itjari, is a mole-like marsupial found in the western central deserts of Australia. It is extremely adapted to a burrowing way of life. It has large ...
'', described and illustrated in his paper in the ''Transactions and Proceedings'' of the
Royal Society of South Australia The Royal Society of South Australia (RSSA) is a learned society whose interest is in science, particularly, but not only, of South Australia. The major aim of the society is the promotion and diffusion of scientific knowledge, particularly in re ...
, 1891, p. 154. In 1893 he investigated at
Lake Callabonna Lake Callabonna is a dry salt lake with little to no vegetation located in the Far North region of South Australia. The lake is situated approximately southwest of Cameron Corner, the junction of South Australia, Queensland and New South Wal ...
a remarkable deposit of fossil bones, and with A. H. C. Zietz reconstructed the complete skeleton of the enormous marsupial '' Diprotodon australis'' and partially reconstructed an immense
wombat Wombats are short-legged, muscular quadrupedal marsupials of the family Vombatidae that are native to Australia. Living species are about in length with small, stubby tails and weigh between . They are adaptable and habitat tolerant, and are ...
and a bird allied to the New Zealand
moa Moa are extinct giant flightless birds native to New Zealand. Moa or MOA may also refer to: Arts and media * Metal Open Air, a Brazilian heavy metal festival * MOA Museum of Art in Japan * The Moas, New Zealand film awards People * Moa ...
. Also in 1893, Stirling and Zietz described five new species of Australian
lizard Lizard is the common name used for all Squamata, squamate reptiles other than snakes (and to a lesser extent amphisbaenians), encompassing over 7,000 species, ranging across all continents except Antarctica, as well as most Island#Oceanic isla ...
s. He was also responsible for the collection of human remains of
Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians are people with familial heritage from, or recognised membership of, the various ethnic groups living within the territory of contemporary Australia prior to History of Australia (1788–1850), British colonisation. The ...
, some of which were shipped to overseas institutions. In the 21st century, the Museum started pursuing an active policy of repatriation and reburial of these remains. In 1894 Stirling was the medical officer and anthropologist of the Horn scientific expedition to Central Australia, and wrote the extensive anthropology report which appears in volume four of the report of the expedition. He was appointed director of the Adelaide museum in 1895 and built up there a remarkable collection including invaluable specimens relating to aboriginal life in Australia. In 1900 he became professor of physiology at Adelaide university, and for many years continued to take a prominent part in university affairs. He retired from the directorship of the museum at the end of 1912, but in 1914 was made honorary curator in ethnology. He had announced his intention of retiring from the university at the end of the year but died after a short illness on 20 March 1919. Stirling was interred at the
North Road Cemetery North Road Cemetery is located in the Adelaide suburb of Nailsworth, approximately 5 km north of the central business district. It is 7.3 hectares (18 acres) in size and there have been over 26,000 burials since its foundation in 1853. The ...
, where his grave now lies near those of several other family members. He was survived by his wife and five daughters (two sons predeceased him).


Private life

In 1882, E. C. Stirling settled near the Adelaide Hills town of Stirling which had been named after his father. He named his 6½-acre property St Vigeans, after the Scottish town where his father had gone to school. A fine two-storey house was constructed in 1882–83, and during the following decades, Stirling himself oversaw the establishment of one of Australia's finest private botanical gardens which included trees and shrubs imported from interstate and overseas. As a fellow of the Royal Horticultural Society of London he had access to many species of plants. A major feature of his gardens were South Australia's first rhododendrons, one of which was named Mrs E C Stirling, and several new varieties were developed by Edward and his head-gardener.


Family

Edward Charles Stirling married Jane Gilbert (1848–1936) on 27 June 1877. Their offspring were: * Harriet Adelaide "Harrie" Stirling JP OBE (15 April 1878 – 19 May 1943), philanthropist *Anna Florence Stirling (1879–1939) married S (Sydney) Russell Booth (died 1949) in 1910 *Jane Winifred "Jeannie" Stirling (1881–1966); studied science at Uni, played viola in SA Orchestra, married
Thorburn Brailsford Robertson Thorburn Brailsford Robertson (4 March 1884 – 18 January 1930), generally known as Brailsford Robertson, was an Australian physiology, physiologist and biochemist. Early life Robertson was born in Edinburgh, the son of Thorburn Robertson and Sh ...
on 8 July 1910 *(Alice) Mary Stirling (1884–1925); an Exhibition (form of scholarship) to be competed for among Hills schools was raised in her memory *Nina Eliza Emmeline Stirling (1888–1976) married Maxwell Jaffrey on 29 August 1927 *Edward Taylor Stirling (1889–1897) died falling from a tree aged 7; *Gilbert Lancelot Stirling (1893–1893) Stirling's brother
John Lancelot Stirling Sir John Lancelot Stirling, (5 November 1849 – 24 May 1932), generally known as Sir Lancelot Stirling, was an Australian politician and grazier. He was a member of the South Australian House of Assembly from 1881 to 1887, representing Mount ...
also played a prominent role in South Australian public life. His eldest sister Mary Eliza Collingwood Stirling married William James Ingram MP on 10 November 1874.


Honours and awards

Stirling received many honours, of which he particularly valued being admitted as a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1893. In the same year, he was also awarded an CMG Other awards included the Queen Regent of Holland's Gold Medal for 'services to art and science' in 1892, and an honorary Doctorate in Science from Trinity College Cambridge in 1910. He was also an honorary fellow of the Anthropological Society of Great Britain, fellow of the Medical and Chirurgical Society, and was knighted in 1917.


Legacy

Stirling was interested in gardening, in the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, and in the welfare of children – he was president of the state children's council. He was a surgeon, physiologist, anthropologist, palaeontologist and legislator, although not sufficiently specialised to reach the highest rank in any one of these departments. With Dr Joseph. C. Verco Stirling wrote a valuable article on
hydatid disease Hydatid may refer to: * Echinococcosis * ''Echinococcus granulosus'', known as the hydatid tapeworm * Hydatid of Morgagni The hydatid of Morgagni can refer to one of two closely related bodily structures: * Appendix of testis (in the male) * Para ...
for ''Allbutt's System of Medicine'', he fostered and brought to maturity the young medical school at the University, and he did significant work in developing the Adelaide museum. Stirling was involved in the struggle to create the Flinders Chase sanctuary on
Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island (, ) is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island, Northern Territory, Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest of Adelaide. Its closest point to the mainland is Snapper Poi ...
. Stirling ranks among the best all-round scientists of his day in Australia.


References

;Notes ;Bibliography * * Primary sources including certificates recording birth, examination results, marriage, name change and death [private records held by AS Pope – files: ‘Stirling, EC’, work, documents, cuttings, life, will, photographs. * Hale, HM 1956, The First Hundred Years of the South Australian Museum 1856–1956, Records of the SA Museum, Vol XII, 18 June 1956, Adelaide. * Last, Peter 1949, ‘The Founder of the Adelaide Medical School’, The AMSS Review, November 1949, pp 7–21. * Waite, Edgar R 1929, The Reptiles and Amphibians of SA, Government Printer, Adelaide, pp 102, 125–128 * Mt Barker Courier: * Oral history: ES Booth (SOHC/MLSA OH295).


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Stirling, Edward Charles 1848 births 1919 deaths Australian anthropologists Clan Stirling, Edward Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of England Fellows of the Royal Society Knights Bachelor People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide Academic staff of the University of Adelaide Members of the South Australian House of Assembly Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Burials at North Road Cemetery People from Strathalbyn, South Australia Australian people of Scottish descent Australian people of Jamaican descent Colony of South Australia people People associated with the South Australian Museum