Parliamentary Service |
|
|
Electorates
- MLC Greenough 12 October 1870–29 July 1873 (lost seat on appeal)
- Toodyay 10 November 1875 (by-election)–21 October 1890
- Nominated MLC 24 December 1890–June 1894
- MLC Metropolitan Province July 1894–21 May 1906
Office
- Colonial Secretary 29 December 1890–11 October 1892
- President Legislative Council 11 October 1892–11 May 1906
Historical Notes
- Father of the House 24 December 1890–May 1906
|
|
|
|
|
Personal Information |
|
|
4 March 1842 |
|
|
Perth, Western Australia |
|
|
29 June 1909 |
|
|
|
|
|
London, England, United Kingdom |
|
|
Norwood Cemetery, UK |
|
|
|
|
|
Son of George and Ann Catherine Cousins |
|
|
Married 4 November 1868, Saint John’s Church, Fremantle to Julia Theresa Eichbaum, daughter of Lieutenant Colonel Charles William and Adelaide Theresa Atkinson
Children: one son and nine daughters
Widowed 4 June 1887 |
|
|
Methodist |
|
|
Locally and Wesleyan Collegiate Institute (Queens College), Taunton, England, 1855–1858
|
|
|
Businessperson |
|
|
Entered father’s business 1858 and assumed control 1867, merchant (large emporium) with pastoral and mining interests
After 1881 less involvement in the store but retained control of family import agency at Fremantle, agent for Lloyds of London, pioneer of trade with Singapore
After 1903 chairman of Elder Shenton and Company
Board of WA Bank, chairman of directors 1886–1909
WA chairman Commercial Union Fire Assurance Company
Director Colonial Mutual Life Assurance of Australasia
Director of Perth Building Society 1873–1909 |
|
|
Perth City Council 1867–1888, Chairman 1875–1877, Mayor 1880–1884 and 1886–1888
Perth Road Board member 1881-1888 |
|
|
Knighted 1893 |
|
|
1893 helped finance discovery of Menzies goldfields
First president Perth Chamber of Commerce 1890
Member Committee Perth Public Library 1893–1909, chairman trustees of Perth Museum
First chairman Perth Hospital Board 1892–1905
From 1897 chairman provisional committee for Children’s Hospital
Home was Crawley Park, 200 acres, now site of University of Western Australia
Member Perth Board of Education 1875–1895 and director of Perth Building Fund
Member King’s Park Board
Sunday school teacher, treasurer, organist, choirmaster for Methodist Church |
|
|
D Black and G Bolton, eds, Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia: volume one 1870-1930, Parliamentary History Project, Perth, WA, 2010,p. 179. |
| Bibliography |
|
|
|
|
B. K. De Garis, 'Shenton, Sir George (1842–1909)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/shenton-sir-george-4571/text7503, published first in hardcopy 1976, accessed online 11 January 2016. |