'In 1997 the State Library of Victoria acquired the Victorian diaries of Joseph Jenkins, comprising part of each of 1869, 1870 and 1871-94. After Joseph Jenkins' death in 1898, in Wales, the diaries were stored in the attic of his daughter Elinor's farmhouse and, it seems, were forgotten until seventy years later when they were discovered by his great granddaughter, Frances Evans. His grandson, William Evans, thereafter published an 'Abridged and Annotated' version of the Australian diaries as Diary of a Welsh Swagman 1869-1894. This was an important publication It not only introduced Jenkins to a reading public, but in addition has become a well-regarded historical account of early Victoria.' (Author's introduction)
