John Gale (journalist)

John Gale (17 April 1831 – 15 July 1929) was an Australian newspaper proprietor, lay preacher and politician. He was the founder of The Queanbeyan Age, the first newspaper to serve the Queanbeyan district in New South Wales. He was also an advocate for the Queanbeyan-Canberra area as the best site of a future Australian national capital, for which he is sometimes called the "Father of Canberra" (although that epithet is also applied to Sir Austin Chapman). He served a single term as Member for Murrumbidgee in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.

Gale was born in Bodmin, Cornwall, England, in 1831 and educated at Monmouth Grammar School. He was apprenticed to the printing trade in 1846 and while learning this trade also completed his training to be a missionary. John Gale arrived in Sydney, Australia, in 1853 on the 'American Lass' with six other young ministers. They were sent by the British Conference for special work in the gold fields as Methodist missionaries (probationary ministers). Gale was appointed to the Goulburn-Gunning Circuit, initially being put in charge of the Berrima section. However, within a year he was moved to the Gunning section where he covered a wide area which included the town (now city) of Queanbeyan in southern New South Wales (NSW).

In conformity with a condition imposed on all missionaries, Gale was expected to remain single during the term of his mission because the cost of paying for the upkeep of a home and a stipend to support a family was more than the church could afford. Gale was never ordained as a minister, however. He chose instead to marry Loanna Wheatley in January 1857 at Waggalallah, NSW, which was located a few miles out of Gunning. Loanna was the youngest daughter of John Wheatley who was very active in the Gunning Methodist Church and a local preacher.

...
Wikipedia