John O'Brien

Born Patrick Joseph Hartigan in Yass, New South Wales, on 13 October 1878, he later wrote under the pen name John O'Brien. He was a Roman Catholic priest, educator, and poet, and his writing grew out of the years he spent ministering in rural New South Wales.

His poems celebrate the speech, worries, faith, and good humor of country Australians. He is especially remembered for Around the Boree Log and Other Verses (1921), a collection that became widely popular, and for the poem "Said Hanrahan," whose famous refrain entered everyday Australian speech.

Hartigan's work was admired not only in Australia but also in Ireland and the United States. He died in Lewisham, Sydney, on 27 December 1952, and remains closely linked with the tradition of Australian bush verse.