Cirrus@Austlit

Dodd Smith Clarke was a government agent, auctioneer, newspaper proprietor and editor. Born in England, he emigrated to Australia in 1868 where he joined G. Elphinstone Dalrymple's 1873 expedition to explore the North-East coast of Australia. During the 1870s he also worked as a commission agent, fowarding agent, timber merchant, and auctioneer.

After working as editor of The Cairns Advertiser and Smithfield Observer, Clarke launched The Townsville Daily Bulletin on 5 September 1881 with Edward Rhode and John Kiley Mehan. Serving as editor from 1881-1910, he also served as manager of The Townsville Herald Newspaper Company until 1895 after overcoming an alcohol problem in the late 1880s.

Clarke was an active supporter of separation, and in his role as editor he encouraged the literary development of writers, including David Green, Edmund Banfield, and James Chisholm.

Source: James Manion. Paper Power in North Queensland: A History of Journalism in Townsville and Charters Towers, Townsville: The North Queensland Newspaper Company Limited, 1982.