Tenison-Woods, Julian Edmund (1832 - 1889)

(also published under the name Julian Edmund Woods, sometimes Tenison-Woods is hypenated, sometimes two words)

Born in London on 15th November 1832, died in Sydney on 7th October 1889.

As a 14 year old he worked for The Times and in 1848 joined the Roman Catholic Church. Because he suffered ill health he moved to Tasmania in 1855. Julian had completed his theological studies by 1856 and was ordained in 1857. He was given a parish at Penola in south-eastern South Australia. In 1866 he helped to found the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart at Penola.

He changed his name from Woods to Tenison-Woods in the 1860's and in 1862 published his first book 'Geological Observations in South s Australia'. At about the same time his first botanical work was done for the Flora of Australiensis (1863-1878), supplying a list of plants for the Ninety Mile Desert in South Australia.

He was appointed Director-General of Catholic Education and held this position for four years. Between 1867 and 1870 he was an editor of several religious magazines some politically orientated. In 1871 he was eased out of Adelaide and until 1883 he conducted missions and retreats in New South Wales, Tasmania: and Queensland.

In Brisbane on the 15th June 1874 he founded the Sisters of Perpetual Adoration.

Because he often clashed with his superiors in 1883 he relinquished parochial work to follow his scientific career. That year he was asked to report on the geology and tin-mining of Malay States. He went on travelling to Java, Borneo, Siam and Japan. In 1885 he surveyed the mineral potential of the Indian Archipelago. He also surveyed coal resources and tin-miners in Queensland. Tenison-Woods is recorded collecting plants in central Queensland from 1881 to 1886.

Following Tenison-Woods' death, his herbarium collections were offered to Ferdinand von Mueller by the executor of his estate (Mrs Gertrude Abbott). Mueller replied:

"In reply to your letter just received, I beg to state that I will gladly give for the Indian plants, brought by our late lamented friend, the Rev J. Tenison Woods, £10, for the Japanese plants, also, £l0, and for the Australian £5; total £25. This would be more than such specimens would fetch in Europe. As regards the drawings ...
... these as well as the loose specimens of fruits and seeds should prove useful to the technological museum of Sydney; so I would advise you to offer them to Mr. Maiden. I like still to mention that if the dried specimens of plants should come here they would be preserved with the utmost care for all time in the Government Herbarium, and all be labelled in due remembrance of our departed friend."

"Let me say that l bear such an admiration for the Rev. J. Tenison Woods, and keep his friendship in such deep remembrance that I will gladly purchase his herbarium for £40."

Source: Australian Dictionary of Biography (1976) and Maiden, J.H. (1908)
Published in Port Curtis District Flora and Early Botanists by G.N. Batianoff and H.A. Dillewaard (1988)
Botany Branch, Queensland Herbarium.
George O'Neill (1929) 'The Life of the Reverend Julian Edmund Tenison Woods', Pelligreni & Co, Sydney. p.396
Portrait Photo: Sourced from website of Tenison Woods College, Mount Gambier, South Australia: http://www.tenison.catholic.edu.au/our-college/our-story

Collecting localities for 'Tenison-Woods, J.E.' from AVH (2025)

Data from 1,239 specimens