C. A. Topp
Charles Alfred Topp BA, LLB, ISO, FLS (22 March 1847 – 13 July 1932)[1] was an education administrator and public servant in colonial Victoria, Australia.
History
[edit]
Topp was born in Huddersfield, Yorkshire, the third son of merchant Samuel Topp (c. 1800 – 23 August 1884)[2] and his wife Sarah Topp, née Clapham,[1] (c. 1819 – 17 September 1890)[3] later of Samuel Topp and Co., 4 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne.[4]
Samuel Topp and his family emigrated to Melbourne by the ship Royal Charter, and young Charles Topp was educated at the Church of England Grammar School and the University of Melbourne, graduating BA in 1867 and LLB in 1869 and was elected to the Bar.[5]
In 1869 he was appointed assistant inspector of schools under G(eorge) Wilson Brown[6] and in 1873 was appointed an inspector for the new department of education. He was appointed senior inspector of schools, then in 1885 succeeded F. J. Gladman as superintendent of the (teacher) Training Institution[7] and principal of the Training College in Spring Street.
In 1888–89 Topp and John Main,[8] senior inspector of Victorian schools, undertook a comparison of Victorian teaching methods with those of New South Wales and South Australia,[9] which report was published in 1889.[10] A recommendation was to grade teachers by ability rather than paper qualifications.
With the overhaul of Victoria's Health laws in 1890,[11] Topp was appointed chairman of the new Board of Public Health,[12] replaced at the Training College by Robert Craig.[13]
He was appointed under-secretary in 1894[14] and a Public Service Commissioner following the retirement of A. W. Howitt.[15]
He was appointed a Public Service Commissioner following the retirement of A. W. Howitt.[16] G. C. Morrison was his replacement as under-secretary.
Recognition
[edit]In 1903 Topp was awarded the Imperial Service Order.[17]
Other interests
[edit]Topp was a keen naturalist, joining the Field Naturalists Club of Victoria in 1883,[18] and president in 1889–90.[19] He was elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society in 1887.[20]
In 1886 Topp succeeded Andrew Harper as warden of the senate of Melbourne University, succeeded in 1890 by Thomas P. McInerney.
Family
[edit]On 25 July 1877 Topp married Euphemia Shields, youngest daughter of Dr John Shields of Launceston, Tasmania,[21] so becoming a brother-in-law of Robert Ellery and Paul MacGillivray.
He died at his home in East Malvern and his remains buried in the Boroondara Cemetery.
References
[edit]- ^ a b Peter Gill (1976). Australian Dictionary of Biography: 'Topp, Charles Alfred (1847–1932)'. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 6 January 2025.
- ^ "Family Notices". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 11, 911. Victoria, Australia. 25 August 1884. p. 1. Retrieved 6 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Family Notices". The Age. No. 11, 097. Victoria, Australia. 18 September 1890. p. 1. Retrieved 6 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Family Notices". The Age. No. 1, 721. Victoria, Australia. 30 April 1860. p. 1. Retrieved 6 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Wednesday July 7, 1869". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 7, 199. Victoria, Australia. 7 July 1869. p. 5. Retrieved 6 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Monday January 17, 1870". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 7, 365. Victoria, Australia. 17 January 1870. p. 4. Retrieved 6 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "The Gippsland Times". Gippsland Times. No. 3, 076. Victoria, Australia. 2 March 1885. p. 3. Retrieved 6 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "About People". The Age. No. 15862. Victoria, Australia. 11 January 1906. p. 4. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Educational". Adelaide Observer. Vol. XLV, no. 2435. South Australia. 2 June 1888. p. 39. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "The Week". The Leader (Melbourne). No. 1736. Victoria, Australia. 20 April 1889. p. 25. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "The New Board of Health". The Age. No. 10895. Victoria, Australia. 24 January 1890. p. 5. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "The Argus". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 13, 600. Victoria, Australia. 24 January 1890. p. 4. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia. includes potted biography
- ^ "The Argus". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 13, 730. Victoria, Australia. 26 June 1890. p. 6. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "The New Under-Secretary". The Weekly Times (Melbourne). No. 1, 291. Victoria, Australia. 5 May 1894. p. 6. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Retirement of Mr A. W. Howitt". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 16, 804. Victoria, Australia. 17 May 1900. p. 8. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Retirement of Mr A. W. Howitt". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 16, 804. Victoria, Australia. 17 May 1900. p. 8. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Imperial Service Order". The Sydney Morning Herald. No. 20, 490. New South Wales, Australia. 10 November 1903. p. 4. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 11, 461. Victoria, Australia. 15 March 1883. p. 7. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "The Naturalist". The Leader (Melbourne). No. 1753. Victoria, Australia. 17 August 1889. p. 36. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 12, 971. Victoria, Australia. 17 January 1888. p. 8. Retrieved 7 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Family Notices". The Argus (Melbourne). No. 9, 707. Victoria, Australia. 26 July 1877. p. 1. Retrieved 6 January 2025 – via National Library of Australia.
