John Arthur Parkin and His Australian Family
Australian History Social History Young Adult Non-Fiction Colonial History Biography & Memoir Educational History Family & Genealogy Business & Industry History
John Arthur Parkin and His Australian Family – Limited Edition #169/300 – is the scarce first-edition hardcover that collectors and family-history buffs scramble to find. Published in 2002 by A. C. Parkin & Co., this 300-copy press run was never reprinted, making low-numbered copies like this one a prized piece of Australiana. Bound in sturdy cloth and protected by the original dust jacket, the book is in very good condition: pages are crisp, unmarked, and tightly bound; the jacket shows only light shelf scuffing—ideal for both reading and display.
Inside, Roger Walker traces the extraordinary arc of John Arthur Parkin, a pivotal but often overlooked figure whose personal story mirrors the growth of modern Australia. From colonial beginnings through two world wars and the birth of the nation’s education and business sectors, the narrative weaves meticulous genealogy with brisk, novelistic detail. Readers meet shearers, station owners, teachers, and entrepreneurs—each generation adding a new layer to the Parkin legacy while illuminating how one extended family helped shape civic life from Adelaide to the outback.
For genealogists the book is gold: hundreds of primary sources, rare photographs, and a full index let you cross-reference names, dates, and properties with online archives. For general readers it is an absorbing social history that shows how small-family decisions ripple into national change. Teachers and adult-learning groups value the clear, engaging prose that turns economic policy, land reforms, and educational debates into living drama without sacrificing scholarly accuracy.
Owning copy #169/300 means holding a slice of documented heritage that most libraries never acquired. Whether you collect limited Australian biographies, are hunting for a quality gift for a history-loving parent, or want to anchor your own family-research shelf with a trustworthy, hard-to-find reference, this numbered first edition delivers both narrative pleasure and long-term value.
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