Australian historian
Alan J. Frost , (29 March 1943 – 12 April 2023) was an Australian historian and professor emeritus at La Trobe University. A major theme of his research involved the European exploration of the Pacific Ocean over the second half of the eighteenth century. He is best known for books in which he challenged common historical stereotypes and misconceptions concerning the colonisation of Australia. These include "Botany Bay Mirages: Illusions of Australia's Convict Beginnings", "Botany Bay: The Real Story", "The First Fleet: The Real Story", and "Mutiny, Mayhem, Mythology: Bounty's Enigmatic Voyage". Frost's arguments radically challenge those expressed by prominent historians Manning Clark and Robert Hughes.
Early life.
Frost was born in 1943 in Cairns and, as the son of teachers, spent his childhood in rural Queensland including time in Gayndah, Beaudesert, East Barron and Cardwell.
Academic career.
Frost completed an MA at the University of Queensland in 1966. Following this, he went to the University of Rochester in New York, where he completed an MA (1968) and a PhD (1969). He took up his appointment in the English department at La Trobe University in 1970, moving full time into the history department in 1975. He was a visiting scholar at Oxford University and taught at the Australian National University, the University of Texas at Austin and the University of Calgary. He served as Pro-Vice Chancellor and Director of La Trobe's Mildura Campus (2004–2006) and as Director, Institute for Advanced Study (2006–2008). He held a personal chair in history at La Trobe until his retirement in 2008, after which he became professor emeritus and continued his scholarship.
The Frost Archive.
For over 35 years Frost collected primary documents relating to the decision to colonise Australia, the mounting of the First Fleet and the early settlement of Sydney. Totalling about 2500 documents, these records were drawn from locations scattered around the globe in order to reconstitute original series and sequences. Give the scope and range of sources and subject matter, they offer a greater overview of these historical events than any single participant could have had at the time. The Frost Archive has vastly expanded the historical record readily available to historians, allowing a more sophisticated base from which to make analyses. It is to be made available on a website of the State Library of New South Wales.
References.
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