John Blight

For the archaeological artist, see John Thomas Blight.

John Blight (born 1913-1995) was an Australian poet. The name Blight is of Cornish origin.^[1]

Biography

Born in Unley, South Australia on 30 July 1913, Blight was educated at Brisbane State High School.^[2] During the Great Depression in Australia he tramped the Queensland coast looking for work.^[3] In 1939 he became an accountant in Bundaberg, Queensland, and after World War II a part-owner of timber mills in the Gympie region. He took up full-time writing in 1973.

John Blight has received numerous awards, including the Dame Mary Gilmore Medal, Grace Leven Prize for Poetry, The Patrick White Literary Award and the Christopher Brennan Award. He died in 1995.^[4]

^ http://www.gould.com.au/Cornish-Family-Names-p/thp009.htm
^ Australian Verse: An Illustrated Treasury, edited by Beatrice Davis, State Library of New South Wales Press, 1996
^ Australian Poets and their Works, by William Wilde, Oxford University Press, 1996
^ Online biographical material and sample 14-line poem, from OldPoetry.com.

Persondata
Name	Blight, John
Alternative names
Short description	Australian poet
Date of birth	1913
Place of birth	Unley, South Australia, Australia
Date of death	1995
Place of death	Australia