Robert D. FitzGerald
| Robert D. FitzGerald | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | 30 November 1830 Tralee, Co. Kerry |
| Died |
12 August 1892 (aged 61) Hunter's Hill, Sydney, New South Wales |
| Occupation | surveyor, ornithologist, botanist and poet |
| Spouse(s) | Emily Blackwell |
| Children | three sons and three daughters |
| Parent(s) | Robert David FitzGerald & Mary Ann, née Bell |
Robert David FitzGerald (or possibly Robert Desmond FitzGerald) (30 November 1830 – 12 August 1892) was an Irish-Australian surveyor, ornithologist,botanist and poet.
Whilst working as a public servant FitzGerald's private passion and ability regarding ornithology and botany became so skillful that he communicated directly with Charles Darwin regarding Australian species of plant and was referred to several times in the book The Different Forms of Flowers on Plants of the Same Species of 1877. He also collected orchids for the great German-Australian botanist Ferdinand von Mueller.
His extraordinary skills gave rise to a volume of work completed over seven years called Australian Orchids which J. D. Hooker another botanist, considered would be an honour to any country and to any Botanist.
FitzGerald was born in Tralee, Co. Kerry, Ireland. His father, also Robert David FitzGerald, was a banker, and his mother was Mary Ann, née Bell. He studied civil engineering at Queen's College, Cork, (now known as University College Cork), and emigrated to Australia.
FitzGerald arrived in Sydney, Australia in 1856 and a short time later was appointed to the Department of Lands as a draftsman for the crown.
Working steadily until 1868 FitzGerald was then promoted to control the roads branch of that department.
By 1873 he had become Deputy Surveyor General, and by 1874 he had been given responsibility as the Chief Mining Surveyor as well as controller of Church and School Lands for New South Wales. Following the advent of the Crown Lands Act of 1884 part of his duty was to analyse and consider the future roles of his department and ironically that analysis resulted in a number of retrenchments including his own.
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