Frank Samuel Williamson Biography

Frank Samuel Williamson (19 January 1865 – 6 February 1936) was an Australian poet.

Williamson was born in Melbourne and educated at Scotch College, Melbourne. He was a secondary school teacher in Melbourne and Sydney, but occasional bouts of intemperance made it difficult for him to keep his positions. He had the reputation of being an excellent master, especially in English. In later years he was attached to the education department of Victoria and taught in a large number of small country schools.

As a young man Williamson had written verse of small merit, but in middle life for a short period he appears to have been inspired by the scenery of his native country to do better work which he polished with great care. In 1912 his one volume of poems, Purple and Gold, appeared; this first edition had several misprints, but these were corrected in a second and enlarged edition published in 1940 with a portrait. Some of the poems in this volume have the true touch and have been deservedly included in several anthologies of Australian verse. He retired from the education department at 65 and had been granted a Commonwealth literary pension, he had some good friends, and he spent the rest of his life in Melbourne. Beyond a few newspaper articles and an occasional set of verses Williamson appears to have done no other writing. He died at the Melbourne hospital on 6 February 1936 and was unmarried.