My Country - Dorothea Mackellar

My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
One of Australia's best known and beloved poems.
“I love a sunburnt country,
A land of sweeping plains
Of ragged mountain ranges
Of droughts and flooding rains”
These evocative words are from one of Australia’s most quoted poems. They are from the second
verse of My country written by a homesick young Australian, Dorothea Mackellar (1885-1963) in
about 1904.
The poem was first published in the London Spectator on 5 September 1908 titled as Core of My
Heart. It reappeared several times in Australia before being included as 'My Country' in her first
book, The Closed Door and Other Verses (Melbourne, 1911). This famous poem is believed to have
been directly inspired by Dorothea Mackellar's experience of life on the land, and her love of the
Allyn River district, NSW.
Core of my heart
a1605001h.jpg [1]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
Core of my heart - poem Dorothea Mackellar
Call # SAFE / MLMSS 1959 / Box 16 / Item IV / C [2]
Digital ID: a1605001
View collection item detail [3]
About this item:
Dorothea Mackellar (1885-1968) is best known as a poet, the author of 'My Country', first published
in 1908 under the title 'Core of My Heart'. She also wrote three novels.
a1605002h.jpg [4]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
Core of my heart -poem p.2 1908
Dorothea Mackellar
Call # SAFE / MLMSS 1959 / Box 16 / Item IV / C [2]
View collection item detail [5]Digital ID: a1605002
About this item:
Dorothea Mackellar (1885-1968) is best known as a poet, the author of 'My Country', first published
in 1908 under the title 'Core of My Heart'. She also wrote three novels.
a1605003h.jpg [6]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
Core of My heart - poem p.3 1908
Dorothea MacKellar
Call # SAFE / MLMSS 1959 / Box 16 / Item IV / C [2]
View collection item detail [7]Digital ID: a1605003
Dorothea Mackellar was born Isobel Marion Dorothea Mackellar at Point Piper in Sydney, NSW on 1
July 1885. Her parents were Sir Charles Kinnaird Mackellar, a notable Sydney physician, and Marion
Mackellar (nee Buckland). She had three brothers, Keith, Eric and Malcolm.
From 1898 to 1901, the Mackellars owned Torryburn station, near East Gresford in the Hunter Valley
of NSW, during one of the region's driest times. While holidaying at the property the family
witnessed the breaking of a drought. In later life, Dorothea Mackellar recalled how, after the rain, the
grass began to shoot across the parched, cracked soil of the paddocks and, as she watched from the
verandah, the land to the horizon turned green before her eyes.
Dorothea Mackellar's iconic verse is now regarded by many Australians as the universal statement of
our nation's connection to the land.
Poem: My Country
About this item:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665001h.jpg [8]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [10]Digital ID: a665001
Page 8 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
About this item:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665002h.jpg [11]
Page 9 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.2 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [12]Digital ID: a665002
Page 10 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
About this item:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665003h.jpg [13]
Page 11 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.3 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [14]Digital ID: a665003
Page 12 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
About this item:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665004h.jpg [15]
Page 13 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.4 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [16]Digital ID: a665004
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
a665005h.jpg [17]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.5 1915
Dorothea MacKellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [18]Digital ID: a665005
Page 16 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
Transcript:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665006h.jpg [19]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.6 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
Digital ID: a665006
View collection item detail [20]
Page 18 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
About this item:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665007h.jpg [21]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.7 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [22]Digital ID: a665007
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
About this item:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665008h.jpg [23]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.8 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [24]Digital ID: a665008
Page 22 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
About this item:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665009h.jpg [25]
Page 23 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.9 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [26]Digital ID: a665009
Page 24 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
About this item:
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
a665010h.jpg [27]
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My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
My Country. A poem by Dorothea Mackellar with decorations and illustrations by J.J.
Hilder, Sydney 1915, p.10 1915
Dorothea Mackellar and Jessie Jewhurst Hilder
Call # A 3025 [9]
View collection item detail [28]Digital ID: a665010
Transcript
Transcript
Jessie Hilder, artist, first exhibited at the Society of Artists, Sydney, in 1907 where his watercolours
were highly praised. He became a full-time professional artist in 1909 but died from tuberculosis in
Page 26 of 27
My Country - Dorothea Mackellar
Published on State Library of NSW (http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au)
1916. (Reference: Australian Dictionary of Biography, vol. 9).
Reference - Australian Dictionary of Biography [29]
Source URL: http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/stories/my-country-dorothea-mackellar
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[28] http://www.sl.nsw.gov.au/collection-items/my-country-poem-dorothea-mackellar-decorationsand-illustrations-jj-hilder-sydney-8
[29] http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/mackellar-isobel-marion-dorothea-7383
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