Thomas Blacket Stephens | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 6th Treasurer of Queensland | |
| In office 21 May 1867 – 15 August 1867 | |
| Preceded by | John Douglas |
| Succeeded by | Robert Mackenzie |
| Constituency | Town of South Brisbane |
| In office 27 January 1869 – 3 May 1870 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Henry FitzGerald |
| Succeeded by | Robert Ramsay |
| Constituency | Town of South Brisbane |
| 2nd Mayor of Brisbane | |
| In office 1862–1862 | |
| Preceded by | John Petrie |
| Succeeded by | George Edmondstone |
| Member of theQueensland Legislative Assembly forSouth Brisbane (Town of South Brisbane) | |
| In office 10 June 1863 – 13 May 1875 | |
| Preceded by | Henry Richards |
| Succeeded by | Richard Kingsford |
| Member of the Queensland Legislative Council | |
| In office 22 July 1876 – 26 August 1877 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1819-01-05)5 January 1819 Rochdale,Lancashire, England |
| Died | 26 August 1877(1877-08-26) (aged 58) Brisbane,Queensland |
| Resting place | South Brisbane Cemetery |
| Spouse | Anne Connah (m.1856 d.1904) |
| Relations | William Stephens (son) |
| Occupation | Fellmonger,Wool Broker,Newspaper proprietor |
Thomas Blacket Stephens (5 January 1819 – 26 August 1877) was a wealthy Brisbane businessman and newspaper proprietor who also served as analderman andmayor ofBrisbane Municipal Council,[1] aMember of theLegislative Assembly of Queensland and a Member of theQueensland Legislative Council.
Thomas Blacket Stephens was born on 5 January 1819 atRochdale,Lancashire, England, the son of Rev. William Stephens (aBaptist minister) and his wife Elizabeth (née Blacket).[2]
On 6 September 1848 Thomas emigrated fromLiverpool on the ship 'Bengal' arriving inSydney,New South Wales on 12 February 1849. His cousinEdmund Blacket was the Colonial Architect in Sydney.[3]
Thomas married Anne Connah inBalmain,Sydney at the home of his cousin, Edmund Blacket, in 1856.[4]
The couple moved toMoreton Bay, nowBrisbane and had 12 children in Brisbane (4 of whom died in infancy). Their children were:[5]
In 1860, Thomas erected a two-storey house in South Brisbane called 'Cumbooquepa' from the Aboriginal name for the waterholes on the land.[7]
In November 1874, Thomas became seriously ill, possibly cholera acquired from a ship visiting from India.[3][8][9][10] Although he recovered somewhat from his illness, he remained weak and in May 1875 retired from many of his duties[11] and made his will.[3]
Thomas died from congestion of the lungs, following some years of poor health following a serious illness in 1874, at his residence 'Cumbooquepa' on 26 August 1877 and was buried inSouth Brisbane Cemetery the following day.[5][12][13][14][15]
In 1890, his widow Anne built a newer home 'Cumbooquepa' above Vulture Street on the property atSouth Brisbane. This house was later purchased in 1919 as theboarding school for the Brisbane girls' schoolSomerville House and is nowheritage-listed.[16] It is often stated that Thomas built or occupied this 'Cumbooquepa', but he is only associated with the earlier house.
Widow Anne died on 12 July 1904 at 'Cumbooquepa' and was buried with her husband inSouth Brisbane Cemetery.[5][13][17]
He had a number of companies as well as interest in land development. His first business in Brisbane is believed to be awoolscour atOrmiston nearMoreton Bay.
In 1856 he purchased land atStones Corner nearEkibin Creek and established awoolscour. The following year (1857) he purchased some adjacent land atAnnerley and established afellmongery andtanning business in Essie Street.
Thomas purchasedThe Moreton Bay Courier sometime in late 1859[18] and he soon turned it into a daily newspaper, theCourier. In 1864 it became theBrisbane Courier. In June–July 1868, he floated the Brisbane Newspaper Company, and transferred the plant and copyright of theBrisbane Courier to it.[19] He was the managing director until he retired in November 1873, when the paper was auctioned.[20][21]
Thomas was analderman from 1859 to 1864 and wasmayor in 1862 of theBrisbane Municipal Council. He served on a number of committees:[1]
From 10 June 1863 to 13 May 1875 Thomas was the electedMember of the Queensland Legislative Assembly (lower house) for theelectorate of the Town of South Brisbane.[22]
He held many senior positions in the government including"[22]
In May 1875, he retired from public life due to an ongoing illness contracted in November 1874.[11]
On 22 July 1876, he was appointed a lifeMember of the Legislative Council ofQueensland (upper house) until his death on 26 August 1877.[22]
Around 1864 to 1875 he served on the various education boards (Board of National Education, General Board of Education, Board of General Education), retiring due to his illness in May 1875.[27][28][29][30][31][32][33]
He was also one of the first people on the board of trustees atBrisbane Grammar School.[3]
He was a director of the South BrisbaneGood Templars' Weekly Penny Savings Bank in 1874.[34]
He was one of the original trustees ofSouth Brisbane Cemetery[35] and was buried there upon his death in 1877.[13]
Media related toThomas Blacket Stephens at Wikimedia Commons
| Parliament of Queensland | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member forSouth Brisbane (Town of South Brisbane) 1863–1875 | Succeeded by |
