George Swinburne
| George Swinburne | |
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| Member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly for Hawthorn |
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In office 1 October 1902 – 31 July 1913 |
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| Preceded by | Robert Barbour |
| Succeeded by | William Murray McPherson |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
3 February 1861 Paradise, Tyne and Wear, England, United Kingdom |
| Died | 4 September 1928 (aged 67) Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
| Spouse(s) | Ethel "Sydney" Hamer (m. 1890–1928) |
| Children | Four daughters |
| Profession | Engineer |
George Swinburne (3 February 1861 – 4 September 1928) was an Australian engineer, politician and philanthropist. He founded the institution which later became Swinburne University of Technology.
Swinburne was born at Paradise, near Newcastle-on-Tyne, England, son of Mark William Swinburne, and his wife Jane née Coates. Mark Swinburne was a draughtsman in the Armstrong works at Elswick, working for a salary of 27s. a week. Later Mark Swiburne established his own business in 1892 as a brass-founder, engineer and coppersmith. Mark married Jane in 1860.
George Swinburne was educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle, and in 1874 became apprenticed to chemical merchants, J. Williamson & Co. After completing his apprenticeship he became a clerk in the same business (1880–82), and studied engineering in the evening,shorthand and German before beginning work in the morning, and joined a debating society. On Sundays Swinburne taught a class in a Methodist Sunday school; he had music lessons and was an avid reader.
In September 1882 Swinburne went to London, finding employment in the gas and mechanical engineering business of his uncle, John Coates. In April 1885, Swinburne was taken into partnership and was able to put £300 of his own savings into the business. Swinburne's chief recreation was music and in June 1885 he was one of the choristers at the Handel festival held in the Crystal Palace. Politically, Swinburne was an ardent Gladstonian Liberal, in 1886 he became election agent for the Liberal candidate for St Pancras South, Sir Julian Goldsmid, 3rd Baronet, who was elected after a strenuous campaign. Swinburne found electioneering a great strain, "a game not worth playing—ended in weariness, sleepless nights and restless days". In December 1885 Coates had gone to Melbourne to start a business, Swinburne was left in charge in London. Coates found the prospects so good that Swinburne followed him and arrived in November 1886.
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