[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_James_Gillen]
Francis James Gillen
Francis James Gillen (28 October 1855 - 5 June 1912) was an early Australian anthropologist and ethnologist.
Gillen was born at Little Para South Australia. He entered the public service in 1867, and was employed as a postal messenger at Clare. He was transferred to Adelaide in 1871 where his duties also included telegraph operation. In 1875 he became involved in the construction of the Australian Overland Telegraph Line and was appointed the Alice Springs post and telegraph Station Master in 1892. At the time Alice Springs was part of South Australia and Gillen, who by virtue of his office held the collateral positions of Special Magistrate and sub-Protector of Aborigines,[1] was effectively the administrator of central Australia.
During his time at Alice Springs he became involved with Aboriginal Australians and in 1894 assisted the Horn Scientific Expedition to Central Australia .[2] Following the expedition he met W. Baldwin Spencer, they wrote The Native Tribes of Central Australia (1899), though it has been claimed[1] that the authorship was mostly Spencer’s.
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