Richard Joseph Smith

Richard Joseph Smith (1819 – 15 November 1883) was a member of both the New South Wales Legislative Council and the Queensland Legislative Council.[1]

Richard Smith
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Legislative Council
In office 1 March 1853 – 29 February 1856
Member of the Queensland Legislative Council
In office 3 July 1863 – 12 June 1866
Personal details
Born	Richard Joseph Smith 1819 Leicester, England
Died	1883 (aged 60–61) Ipswich, Queensland, Australia
Resting place	Ipswich General Cemetery
Nationality	English Australian
Spouse(s)	Maria Susanna Stutchbury (m.1861 d.1888)
Occupation	Business owner, Commissioner of Crown Lands

Early life

Memorial tablet erected to Smith's honour in S Paul's Church, Ipswich

Smith was born at Leicester, England in 1819 to Richard Smith and arrived in New South Wales as a young boy around 1824. By 1845 he had travelled to Brisbane and established the Kangaroo Point Boiling Down Works, the Marie Boiling Down Works and a Sawmill.[1]

Politics

Smith became an elected member of the New South Wales Legislative council on 1 March 1853, representing the Pastoral Districts of Moreton, Wide Bay, Burnett, and Maranoa. His term ended on 29 February 1856.[2]

After Queensland had separated from New South Wales, Smith was appointed to the Queensland Legislative Assembly on 3 July 1863.[1] Smith was declared insolvent in 1866 and as a consequence resigned from the Council.[1]

Civic life

His Excellency the Governor of Queensland appointed by commission, under his hand and seal, Richard Joseph Smith, Esq.to be First Lieutenant of the Cavalry of the Queensland Volunteer Rifle Corps on 26 May 1860.[3][4]

After his resignation he became a crown law agent in Ipswich, before his appointment as a land commissioner in the Moreton area.[1]

Personal life

In 1861, Smith married Maria Susanna Stutchbury in Brisbane and together they had one daughter.[1] He died in 1883[1] and was buried in Ipswich General Cemetery.[5]

References

1. "Former Members". Parliament of Queensland. 2015. Retrieved 7 March 2015.
2. "Mr Richard Joseph Smith (1819-1883)". Former Members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 7 June 2019.
3. "QUEENSLAND VOLUNTEER RIFLE CORPS". The North Australian, Ipswich And General Advertiser. V (253). Queensland, Australia. 1 June 1860. p. 3. Retrieved 31 July 2020 – via National Library of Australia.
4. Pixley, Norman S. (Norman Stewart), d. 1988 (1 January 1949), The military defence force of Queensland, Royal Historical Society of Queensland, p. 254, retrieved 31 July 2020CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
5. Ipswich General Anglican "B" Section — Australian Cemeteries. Retrieved 7 March 2015.

 

New South Wales Legislative Council
Preceded by Francis Bigge	Member for Pastoral Districts of Moreton, Wide Bay, Burnett & Maranoa Mar 1853 – Feb 1856	Council replaced