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StateLibQld 2 134893 Dickson family, Toorak House, Brisbane 1872

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StateLibQld 2 134893 Dickson family, Toorak House, Brisbane 1872

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Dickson family, Toorak House, Brisbane 1872
The early part of William Boag's career was spent in Sydney where he was in partnership with portrait photographer Joseph Charles Milligan. (Images made by Boag are in the collection of the Campbelltown and Airds Historical Society.).
Boag arrived in Queensland in November 1871. He travelled around the south-east, along the foreshore of Moreton Bay and the township of Cleveland. He then moved into the Logan and Albert area where he captured images of local crushing mills and sugar plantations. While at Yatala, he took on a partner, John Henry Mills, and by the end of 1872, both men were in Stanthorpe where they remained for several months, producing views of the booming tin-mining settlement.
In July 1873, after stopping off in Warwick, Boag and Mills extended their operations to Mackay, where they remained until October 1875. During this time, Boag made trips to St Lawrence and Cooktown, however his movements after this are difficult to trace. It is known that by mid 1876 he was at Copperfield and Clermont, and in February 1878, he inserted a notice in the Peak Downs Telegram announcing that he was leaving for the west. Then information ceases abruptly. It is possible that Boag never reached his destination, since his death certificate records that he died in 1878 at an unknown location.

The wealth which the future Sir James Dickson (1832-1901) acquired as an auctioneer and estate agent, enabled him to erect Toorak House on 20 acres overlooking the Brisbane River at Hamilton in 1864. It was named after another house in Melbourne which had been built by cousins. Dickson's distinguished career included service as Chairman of the Royal Bank of Queensland, several months as Premier in 1898, and in 1900 an appointment to the delegation led by Alfred Deakin which travelled to London to negotiate terms with the British Government, on the Commonwealth of Australia Constitution Bill. Toorak served as his residence for almost forty years and was the venue where he entertained distinguished guests. It also was a family home where he lived with his (first) wife, Annie (pictured) and where their six sons and seven daughters were cared for by Chinese servants. Second son, Frederick (1859-1928) became Crown prosecutor in Brisbane.

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1872
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State Library of Queensland
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