William Fergusson (politician)

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William John Fergusson was a solicitor and politician from New South Wales, Australia.

He was a practicing solicitor in Sydney before entering politics, [1] having been admitted in March 1876. [2] He was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Glen Innes, at the 1880 election, serving until 1887. [3] Fergusson supported William Clarke's attempts to form a third party, however these failed with no other parliamentarian joining them, [4] and Fergusson sat with the opposition to the ministry of Patrick Jennings. [5] Political parties emerged in New South Wales in 1887, divided on fiscal lines, and despite his previous opposition to Jennings, Fergusson stood as a Protectionist candidate at the 1887 election for Wentworth, finishing a distant fourth. [6]

Very little is known of his biography, with his parliamentary biography bereft of the usual details. [1] On 14 May 1881 he married Emily Maud Mary née York. [7] He was a partner in the legal firm Fergusson and Broad and by 1893 the partnership was in difficulty, having received £1,000 from a client and £500 went missing. The explanation offered by his partner was that Fergusson, who was in England, had sent a draft and the money lodged in the bank had been used to pay that draft. [8] He was a trustee of the will of James York, and in 1893 the beneficiaries, including his wife sought to have him removed as a trustee and to account for the money received by him. [9]

It appears that he never returned to Australia, [10] and his wife obtained a divorce in 1912 on the grounds of desertion. [11]

Fergusson is believed to have died in New Zealand. [1]

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References

  1. 1 2 3 "Mr William John Fergusson". Former Members of the Parliament of New South Wales . Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  2. ↑ "Admission of Attorneys". The Sydney Morning Herald . 27 March 1876. p. 2. Retrieved 22 March 2021– via Trove.
  3. ↑ Green, Antony. "Elections for the District of Glen Innes". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales . Retrieved 15 August 2020.
  4. ↑ Dunn, F. M. "Clarke, William (1843–1903)". Australian Dictionary of Biography . Melbourne University Press. ISSN   1833-7538 . Retrieved 22 March 2021– via National Centre of Biography, Australian National University.
  5. ↑ "Fergusson, William John, Esq. (Glen Innes)". Evening News . 16 September 1886. p. 7. Retrieved 22 March 2021– via Trove.
  6. ↑ Green, Antony. "1887 Wentworth". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales . Retrieved 22 March 2021.
  7. ↑ "Marriages: Fergusson-York". The Sydney Morning Herald . 3 June 1881. p. 8. Retrieved 22 March 2021– via Trove.
  8. ↑ "Law report: Re Fergusson and Broad ex parte Lan Company of Australia". The Sydney Morning Herald . 25 November 1893. p. 5. Retrieved 22 March 2021– via Trove.
  9. ↑ "Law report: Saunders v Fergusson". The Sydney Morning Herald . 14 December 1893. p. 3. Retrieved 22 March 2021– via Trove.
  10. ↑ "Divorce Court". The Sydney Morning Herald . 4 May 1912. p. 6. Retrieved 22 March 2021– via Trove.
  11. ↑ "Divorce Court". The Sydney Morning Herald . 7 May 1912. p. 12. Retrieved 22 March 2021– via Trove.

 

New South Wales Legislative Assembly
New seat Member for Glen Innes
1880–1887		Succeeded by
George Matheson
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