Since 1923, members of the Henry Lawson Memorial & Literary Society have gathered to celebrate the life of literary great Henry Lawson.

The society is a shrine not only to Lawson’s work, but also to Australian literature past and present. Its mission is to nourish and maintain the national identity forged by the work of Lawson and other Australian writers who have contributed to the culture we share today. According to Noel Tennison, editor of the Henry Lawson Memorial Society’s bi-monthly publication The Lawsonian and celebrated writer in his own right, there are three main components which illustrate Lawson’s work and that which he contributed to Australian literature: hardship, mateship and humour. It is these components that make his work something to celebrate for Tennison and his fellow society members.

Hardship…

Noel Tennison applies one of his personal favourite quotes to the life of Henry Lawson:

“There is not enough darkness in all the world to put out the light of one small candle.” – Unknown

Born in 1867, Lawson was no stranger to hardship, having been raised in poverty in rural New South Wales. At a young age he also discovered that he was functionally deaf, and he remained so throughout his life. Much of Lawson’s work is of course inspired by historic Australian events due to the period through which he lived, including the Eureka Stockade of 1854. His ability to acknowledge the tragedy and true emotion is admired by the Society as it is amongst Australians. Despite Lawson’s own hardships, Tennison commends Lawson’s self awareness and also his special regard for the plight of women, displayed in one of Lawson’s favourite pieces The Drover’s Wife: “I pity haggard women, I wrote for them with all my soul”.

Mateship…

In a time where ‘mateship was a code for survival” according to Tennison, a quintessentially Australian characteristic of Lawson and his work was the theme of mateship, further reflecting his self awareness. In his work My Brother’s Keeper, he writes: “mates are closer than brothers in the bush.” For Tennison, Lawson’s sentimental tribute to mateship is the piece Glass On The Bar, which he admits usually reduces him to tears and thus he insists in should be read in its entirety for full appreciation. In one segment he writes: “they thought of the far away grave on the plane, they thought of the comrade who came not again…”. From this example of raw emotion it is not difficult to understand why Lawson’s work touched the hearts of so many Australians.

Humour…

Despite his less than glamorous upbringing and the decades of difficulty that followed for Australia, Lawson was still able to incorporate humour into his work. Tennison challenges anyone to read The Loaded Dog and “not break into laughter”, as the piece humorously tells the tale of a dog and a stick of dynamite. Many other characters also showcased Lawson’s lighter side throughout his career, displaying his talent and versatility.

Tennison explains the tragedy of what he describes as Lawson’s “greatest achievement”. Missing since 1896, the first ever compiled film script in the world, entitled Where Dead Men Lie was crafted by Lawson some nine years before a movie was even seen in Australia. The film was finally produced in 1972 after being lost for decades when the rights were purchased and held by an American folk singer. In 2012 it was finally made into a DVD format. The epic 15 minute production is now fittingly available through the society, truly keeping Lawson’s work alive for future generations.

Though it has now been 82 years since the Henry Lawson Memorial & Literary Society began, you can still find the statue of Lawson nestled amongst the trees in Footscray Park. A larger than life-size bronze head of the legendary writer sits atop two granite steps, erected in 1960. Although the meeting place for members has now changed to Lonsdale Street’s St Francis’ church, the reason for doing so has not – members still gather to celebrate Lawson’s life and work. The Lawsonian exists to further do so, inviting members to submit for publication works of their own along with Lawson’s.

The society also allows members to present the work of others which they enjoy, so that the Australian literary culture perpetuated by Lawson and his ethos of mateship remains alive and well.