In 1859, Queensland separated from New South Wales and became a colony in its own right. The first Governor of the State of Queensland was Sir George Ferguson Bowen (Charterhouse, Trinity College, the Colonial Service). His wife, Lady Bowen, was born with an exotic name and pedigree so glamorous that it’s best to quote directly from Hugh Gilchrist’s Australian Dictionary of Biography entry on her (lest I miss something impressive):
Diamantina Bowen (1833-1893), governor’s wife, was born in 1833 on the island of Zante (Zakinthos), Greece, tenth of eleven children of Conte Giorgio-Candiano Roma and his wife Contessa Orsola, née di Balsamo. The family—originally named Regolo and with origins in thirteenth-century Rome—included notable men in the Venetian occupation of Corfu, the Peloponnese and Crete, and some distinguished personages in newly independent Greece. Belonging to the small aristocracy of the Ionian Islands, Diamantina enjoyed a privileged life during the British rule (1815-64). Her father was president of the Corfiot Senate and titular head of the Ionian Islands Republic. Queen Victoria appointed him the islands’ poet laureate.
Australian Dictionary of Biography
How did she go from an aristocratic Italian-speaking family in the Greek Islands to Colonial Brisbane in December 1859? Enter Sir George Ferguson Bowen, Government Secretary to the Ionian Islands. They married in 1856, and Sir George took a new Colonial posting in 1859. Some place called Brisbane.
The couple came to a ramshackle tropical township, with no official Government House and proceeded to charm the pants off the locals. Lady Bowen brought her solemn beauty, breeding and devotion to duty. Sir George brought his experience and skill as an administrator to get the place going. Between them, they did their best to get us up to scratch.
Lady Bowen gave birth to three of their children whilst in Brisbane, and did an enormous amount of charity work, and wept when she left the township in 1868. I like to think it wasn’t from relief.
Queenslanders were so enamoured of the couple that they went mad naming everything in sight after them. Sir George got the town, but Diamantina got just about everything else.
Sir George inspired the names of the town of Bowen, Bowen Peak, Bowen Point, Bowen Rock, Bowen Street, Bowen Road, Bowen Hills, Bowen Harbour, Bowen Mountain, Bowen River, Bowen Camp Creek, Bowenville town, Bowenville parish, Bowen Basin, and the mango.
Lady Bowen had more names so she found herself the inspiration for:
Diamantina:
Diamantina Lakes, Diamantina Island, Diamantina River, Diamantina National Park, Clematis Diamantina, Diamantina Shire, Diamantina Hospital, Diamantina Orphanage, Diamantina Spur, Diamantina House, Mount Diamantina, HMAS Diamantina 1 and 2, Diamantina Circuit, Diamantina Healthcare Museum, and then later –the Diamantina Institute, Diamantina Drover (song), Diamantina Cocktail (drink and album), Diamantina Scout Group, and everything from tents to coffee to livestock couriers.
Countess Di Roma:
Roma town, Roma Peak, Roma Point, Roma Rock, Roma Street, Roma Street Railway station, Roma street parkland, and Countess Street, Ithaca and Ithaca Creek. And eventually everything from a Clinic to a caravan company.
Later, Sir George served as Governor of Victoria (1873-1879), with his wife, who went roller-skating once and was attacked by a mentally ill woman in 1876. Melbourne people felt that they were a bit more sophisticated and demonstrated this by only naming a few minor things after the vice-regal couple.
Those snobs.
SOURCES:
Hugh Gilchrist, ‘Bowen, Diamantina (1833–1893)’, Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/bowen-diamantina-12812/text23125, published first in hardcopy 2005, accessed online 14 March 2019.
R. B. Joyce, ‘Bowen, Sir George Ferguson (1821–1899)’, Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/bowen-sir-george-ferguson-3032/text4451, published first in hardcopy 1969, accessed online 14 March 2019.
PHOTO CREDITS:
- Lady Bowen signal box photo credit: Springhillvoices.com.
- Lady Bowen portrait photo credit: writeopinions.com.
- Sir George Bowen photo credit: blogs.slq.qld.gov.au.
- Sir George and Lady Bowen picture credit: Wikipedia.
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