Guide to the Papers of Leonard Brokenshire Curnow, 1948-1981

Summary

Collection number:

MS 6780

Creator:

Leonard Brokenshire Curnow

Extent:

1.29 metres and (3 folios)

Language:

English

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Leonard Brokenshire Curnow, National Library of Australia, MS 6780, [box number and series and/or file number]'.

Availability:

Available

Access conditions:

Available for research. Not for loan.

Background

Content Summary:

The bulk of the material relates to Curnow's work as an administrator in various sporting organisations in Australia. The papers also provide an insight into his work as a professional engineer with various government agencies, such as the Victorian State Railroad, and the Australian Department of Administrative Services, formerly the Department of Supply.

The material documents Curnow's activities as an official at various sporting events, as well as providing information about the administration and operation of various athletics organisations, especially during the period 1950-1980. In general, the collection reflects Curnow's strong commitment to the development and growth of athletics, and of sport in general, in Australia.

Biographical Note:

Leonard Brokenshire Curnow was born in 1904. He was educated at the Ballarat School of Mines, and later at the Swinburne Technical College in Melbourne, where he studied Mechanical Engineering.

In 1920, at the age of sixteen, he commenced a five year apprenticeship with the Victorian Railways as a fitter and turner at the Ballarat North Workshops. Curnow did well at the apprentices' examinations and was subsequently promoted to the Melbourne Drawing office of the railroad as a Draftsman. Promotion quickly followed, with Curnow advancing to Engineering Assistant and then to Production Engineer at the Newport Workshops.

In 1933, Curnow was seconded to the State Administration as Assistant Secretary and Technical Advisor of the Youth Employment Committee, a body formed to assist in the rehabilitation of young people who had suffered as a result of the Great Depression. At the same time, he spent much of his time lecturing in Engineering.

Early in 1940, shortly after the outbreak of World War II, Curnow was seconded to the Federal Administration as Assistant Controller of Technical Training in the then Ministry of Munitions. In 1941, he went to London, where he was a member of the Australian Munitions Delegation. He was also controller of the Ordnance Section at Australia House. Apart from his duties there, he represented Australia on Lord Hankey's British Parliamentary Committee which undertook investigations relative to post-war problems.

In late 1944, Curnow was recalled to Australia to assist Sir Harold Clapp in compiling the Clapp Report on the 'Standardisation of Australia's Railway Gauges'. In 1952 he was transferred to the Department of Defence Production as Senior Engineer in the Ammunitions section.

As far as can be ascertained, Curnow was actively involved in sporting organisations from about the late 1920's. From 1927 until at least 1960, and possibly later, he was a Council Member of the Victorian Amateur Athletics Association, and served as that organisation's Vice-President for at least thirty years from about 1931 onwards. In 1938 he was Assistant Clerk of the course at the British Empire Games in Sydney, and in 1950, was the Manager of the Australian Athletics Team to the British Empire Games in New Zealand. In 1952, Curnow was an Observer at the Helsinki Olympic Games.

Aware of Curnow's great interest in sport, and his organisational talents, Curnow was seconded to the Organising Committee for the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne as Deputy Technical Director, with which was combined the job of Arena Manager at the Melbourne Cricket Ground during the progress of the Games. In 1957, he was awarded the OBE for his services to Amateur Athletics.

After the Melbourne Olympics, Curnow returned to the Department of Supply's Ammunitions Supply Branch. In 1958 he became Secretary and Executive Officer of the 'Working Party on Palletization and Unit Loading', later known as the 'Department Material Handling Committee'.

In 1964, Curnow was the General Manager of the Australian Olympic Delegation to the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games.

In 1970, he retired from federal service. Curnow was a Life-Member of the Amateur Athletic Union of Australia, the Victorian Amateur Athletic Association, the Ballarat Chapter of the Victorian Amateur Athletic Association, and the Melbourne Harriers.

Curnow achieved a great deal during his lifetime, especially in terms of his service to the nation, and his services to sport in Australia. The collection is rich in its coverage of sport, most particularly in the field of athletics. There is a wealth of information about his involvement in the Australian Olympic movement, and his contributions to the 1956 Melbourne Olympics and the 1964 Tokyo Olympics are prominent features of the collection. The collection is also rich in evidence of his interest in, and support for, the Amateur Athletics Union of Australia, and the Victorian Amateur Athletics Association.

Immediate Source of Acquisition:

This collection was acquired by the National Library of Australia in 1982. The collection consists of correspondence, reports, minutes of meetings, notes, printed materials, newspaper clippings, architectural scale drawings, a specimen of the running track used at the Mexico City Olympic Games in 1968, and miscellaneous items of a personal nature.

Arrangement:

The various series were created out of broad subject areas which would seem to reflect Curnow's major sporting, and other interests. The papers which fell into those broad subject areas were then arranged chronologically, in so far as it was possible to do so.

Indexed terms

Names:

Leonard Brokenshire Curnow

Conditions Governing Access:

Please refer to the collection's catalogue record for the access conditions (http://nla.gov.au/nla.cat-vn2604448).

Conditions Governing Use:

Copying and publishing of unpublished manuscript material is subject to copyright restrictions. For such material, written permission to publish must be obtained from the copyright holder(s). Copying of unpublished material for research purposes is permissible 50 years after the death of the creator of the material.

Preferred citation:

Items from this collection should be cited as '[Title or description of manuscript item], Papers of Leonard Brokenshire Curnow, National Library of Australia, MS 6780, [box number and series and/or file number]'.

Location of this collection:

National Library of Australia

Parkes Place

Canberra ACT 2600, Australia

Contact:

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