Tracking A.B. Triggs and his collections - Arthur Bryant Triggs - Biography

MARGIN: Life & Letters in Early Australia, Nov, 2003 by Alan Ives

In his book of 1952 (see below) James R. Tyrrell, founder of the well known Sydney bookselling firm, wrote:

   "The Dickens cheque was only one of the interesting Dickens items
   and many other fine things I purchased at the quite remarkable
   Triggs sale at Yass, New South Wales, only a few years ago (in 1945).
   I was invited up to the beautiful homestead there to price the
   collection of treasures prior to the sale. As well as the Dickens
   section, there was a grand library of fine books, as good a
   collection of rare coins as I have ever had the pleasure of handling
   in quite a lot of experience, and a valuable collection of historic
   and beautiful laces, made for queens and empresses and princesses,
   which had been Mrs. Triggs's special interest. I think I might
   fairly describe the Triggs sale as the greatest of its kind ever
   held in the country in this country".

Tyrrell goes on to record some of the items he bought and to whom he in turn sold them. An autograph letter by Sir Walter Scott was acquired by W. Farmer Whyte [journalist and biographer of W.M. Hughes] then living in Canberra. Another remarkable letter was written by Bligh during his short-lived governorship of New South Wales--it became part of the collection of Edward Hirst, Managing Director of British General Electric. Professor Ford of Sydney University purchased a Pepys signed document. A number of letters by famous Americans Tyrrell sold to an American who took them back to their country of origin. In 1952 Tyrrell still had in his possession "a Leichhardt letter, written to P.S. Thomson in Sydney just after Leichhardt's return from crossing the Australian continent from east to north". Tyrrell goes on to describe in detail the Royal Letters Patent signed by Edward the Sixth and his Council of Regency and sealed with the Great Seal of England.

At the moment that is where the quest for information about A.B. Triggs and his collections rests. Hopefully more information will come to light--in which case this quest will be revisited. To augment the text above an attempt at a bibliography of items about or by A.B. Triggs is appended, as is an initial family tree.

Towards a bibliography relating to A.B. Triggs:

(Article in the Pastoral Review of 1911 about A.B. Triggs.)

note: this item is yet to be seen. It is mentioned by W.A. Bayley in his book on Yass (1973--see below)

Johns, Fred. 1913

Fred Johns's annual/for 1913/showing/Who is Who/in Australasia/A record of the prominent people/of the time/ ... /second year of Issue. Prominent people: 'Triggs, Arthur Bryant, of Linton, Yass, pastoralist of New South Wales, one of the sheep kings of Australia'; pages 129-130. Adelaide, South Australia.

note: in this article Johns qoutes The Pastoralists' Review on Triggs' operations. Possibly the words are flora the 1911 article noted above.

Johns, Fred. 1914

Fred Johns's/annual/mainly a record off Australasia's prominent people/ (incorporating Who is Who in Australasia)/ ... /third year of issue. 'Triggs, Arthur Bryant, of "Linton", Yess, N.S.W., one of the Sheep Kings of Australia'; page 210, column 1 Sir Isaac Pitman & Sons, Ltd., London.