The Dictionary of Australasian Biography/Withers, William Bramwell
Withers, William Bramwell, son of Jason Withers and Elizabeth Hendy his wife, was born on July 27th, 1823, at Whitchurch, Hampshire, and is a strong advocate of vegetarianism. He left England in 1849 for Natal, where he contributed to the Natal Witness and Natal Standard. He landed in Victoria in 1852, and after various other employments, was engaged in Melbourne as a journalist until June 1885, when he took up his residence at Ballarat. In addition to his work on the Ballarat Times, Ballarat Star, and Ballarat Courier, he has written several works of fiction. His novel "Eustace Hopkins" was published in the Sydney Echo and Ballarat Courier, and was awarded second place in the Age competition of a hundred and twenty competitors, and "The Westons" was published in the Melbourne World and Federal Australian. His other works are the "History of Ballarat," the "Ballarat Chronicles and Pictures," and his "Reminiscences of the '50's and '60's."