George Shenton | |
|---|---|
 Sir George Shenton | |
| 2ndPresident of the Western Australian Legislative Council | |
| In office 11 October 1892 – 11 May 1906 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Cockburn-Campbell |
| Succeeded by | Henry Briggs |
| Member of theWestern Australian Legislative Council forMetropolitan Province | |
| In office July 1894 – 21 May 1906 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Charles Sommers |
| Member of theWestern Australian Legislative Council forGreenough | |
| In office 12 October 1870 – 29 July 1873 | |
| Preceded by | Constituency established |
| Succeeded by | Charles Crowther |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 4 March 1842 Perth,Western Australia, Australia |
| Died | 29 June 1909(1909-06-29) (aged 67) |
| Resting place | Norwood Cemetery |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 10 |
| Parent |
|
| Education | Wesleyan Collegiate Institute |
| Profession | Entrepreneur, politician |
Sir George Shenton (4 March 1842 – 29 June 1909) was a prominent businessman incolonialWestern Australia, the firstMayor of Perth, and aMember of the Western Australian Legislative Council for over thirty years.
George Shenton was born inPerth, Western Australia on 4 March 1842,[1] the eldest son ofGeorge Shenton Sr, a wealthy businessman who was Perth's firstpharmacist.[2] Shenton Jnr was educated locally until 1855, when at the age of 13 he was sent toEngland to complete his education at theWesleyan Collegiate Institute (Queen's College) inTaunton. In 1858 he returned to Perth, where he received experience working in a range of his father's businesses, including running his father's store inGeraldton, and managing the family's farm on theGreenough River.[1][3]
On 4 November 1868, Shenton married Julia Theresa Eichbaum in a ceremony atFremantle.[1][4]
On 5 March 1867, Shenton Snr drowned when hisschooner,The Lass of Geraldton, capsized offMandurah in a storm.[2] Shenton Jnr then took over his father's businesses. The Shenton family's businesses continued to prosper over the next thirty years, but as Shenton became more involved in politics he had less time to invest in his business activities. From 1884, his youngest brother Ernest gradually took over the running of the Perth store,[1] and another brother, Edward, took the Geraldon business as his inheritance.[citation needed] This left George with responsibility for the shipping business that his father had established.[1]
Shenton ran a number of coastal vessels in partnership withJohn Monger, and the two men had some of the best-known sailing ships of the era. He exported substantial quantities ofwool,timber,sandalwood andminerals toLondon, and pioneered Western Australia's trade withSingapore. He was an agent for a number of firms, includingLloyd's of London, andFelgate's, a London company that controlled most of Western Australia's trade with Britain in the 1870s.
George Shenton also invested profitably ingold mining. He was a member of thesyndicate that financedLeslie Menzie's 1894prospecting expedition that resulted in the discovery of theMenzies gold field. The first lease became the famousLady Shenton mine, which yielded over 130,000 ounces ofgold and paid out over £150,000 individends.[1] Shenton later became ashareholder and director of the Gold Estates Mining Company.
Shenton became a director of a number of local companies, and was Chairman of Directors of theWestern Australian Bank from 1886 until his death. On the establishment of aPerth Chamber of Commerce in 1890, he became its first president.[1]
In 1886, Shenton appointed H. F. Payne to manage his shipping agency. As he became increasingly involved in politics, his involvement in his shipping business decreased, and he came to rely more and more heavily on Payne. In 1903 he merged his company with theSouth Australian companyElder Smiths, to form a new company under the nameElder Shenton and Co. Ltd.[1] This company survives today as the well-knownAustralianrural services providerElders Limited. George Shenton became a principal shareholder and Chairman of Directors of the new company, but was largely uninvolved in the day-to-day running of the firm.
In 1867, the same year that he took over his father's businesses, Shenton was elected to thePerth City Council. He would remain a member of the council until 1888. From 1875 to 1877, he was chairman of the council, and when Perth became amayoralty in 1880, he became the first Mayor of Perth. Shenton was Mayor until 1884, and again from 1886 to 1888. His major contribution to Perth during this time was themacadamizing and kerbing of the city's roads.
Western Australia gainedrepresentative government in 1870, and in October of that year the firstWestern Australian Legislative Councilelections were held. On 12 October 1870, George Shenton was elected unopposed to theseat of Greenough. The main political issue of the day was that offree trade versusprotection. In accordance with the wishes of his constituents, Shenton took a protectionist stance, helping to push for animport duty onflour. This was opposed by thegovernor, SirFrederick Weld, and when the Legislative Council successfully moved an amendment on the matter, Weld responded by dissolving the Council in March 1872. Shenton was then re-elected for Greenough, comfortably defeating his opponent, Geraldton merchantHenry Gray.
Shenton was absent from the colony during the 1872 election, and his campaign was run by his friendCharles Crowther, who ran the Greenough Hotel. On the evening following the election, Crowther held a supper and ball for Shenton's supporters. Although "treating the electors" was a common practice at the time, Gray lodged a complaint alleging that Crowther had bribed the electorate. In July 1873, theSupreme Court upheld Gray's complaint, finding that Crowther's actions might have induced electors to vote for Shenton. No blame was attached to Shenton, but his election was declared void. Shenton then declined to stand for election again, so Crowther himself did so, heavily defeating Gray.
On 10 November 1875, Shenton was again elected to the Legislative Council, this time defeatingAndrew Dempster for theseat of Toodyay. He would hold the seat until the advent ofresponsible government in October 1890. As member for Toodyay, Shenton continued to favour protectionism, and staunchly opposed responsible self-government. As support for self-government grew, however, Shenton became less vocal on the subject, and when a crucial resolution on the subject was carried 13 votes to 4 in 1887, Shenton abstained from voting. Thereafter he ceased opposing responsible self-government, and in 1889, he was re-elected on a platform of immediate self-government under a compromise constitution.
Under responsible government, Western Australia adopted a bicamerallegislature, with an electiveLegislative Assembly as its "lower house", and the nominative Legislative Council as its "upper house". Shenton decided not to stand for election to the Assembly, and was instead nominated to the Council, thereupon becomingFather of the House. His stated reason for entering the upper house rather than the lower house was that it would take up less of his time, but when the firstPremier of Western Australia,Sir John Forrest, invited Shenton to joinhis Cabinet Ministry asColonial Secretary, he accepted.[1]
As Colonial Secretary and the only Government minister in the upper house, Shenton had an extremely heavy workload. When the prestigious and far less demanding office ofPresident of the Legislative Council became available in 1892, he immediately resigned from Cabinet to offer himself for election to the position.[1] The following year he was appointedKnight Bachelor.[1]
In July 1894, the Legislative Council became elective, and Shenton was elected to aMetropolitan Province seat. He held the seat and the Presidency of the Legislative Council until his retirement in May 1906.[1]
Shenton's health was failing when he retired in 1906, and he lived for only three more years, dying in London on 29 June 1909.[5] He was buried inWest Norwood Cemetery. His estate at his death was valued at £186,627.[1]
George Shenton is honoured by thePerth suburbShenton Park. His home, namedCrawley Park by a previous owner, was situated on a 200-acre (0.81 km2) site much of which is now the site of theUniversity of Western Australia.[1] The suburbCrawley is named after Shenton's land. The Crawley Park homestead in which Shenton lived, now known asShenton House, still stands in the University Grounds, and is managed by theNational Trust of Australia.[6]
| Western Australian Legislative Council | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Constituency created | Member forGreenough 1870-1873 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by Constituency created | Member forMetropolitan Province 1894-1906 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | President of the Western Australian Legislative Council 1892–1906 | Succeeded by |
