He dominated the literary and intellectual milieu of Sydney during the 1850s and 1860s and his personality, ideas, scholarship, and practical assistance affected the lives of most writers in these formative years of colonial literary development.
He gave financial and emotional support to writers during their not infrequent personal crises, and provided intellectual nourishment, constructive literary criticism, and a sense of belonging to the European literary tradition during periods of professional self-doubt.
He influenced an even wider section of colonial society through his involvement with the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts, the Free Public Library of Sydney, Sydney College and the University of Sydney.