William Stephens (1857–1925) was a businessman and politician in Queensland,Australia. He was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly and a Member of the Queensland Legislative Council.
William Stephens was born on 7 November 1857 at South Brisbane,the eldest son of Thomas Blacket Stephens and his wife Ann (née Connah), [1] and raised at the family home of Cumbooquepa on Vulture Street,South Brisbane. [2] He was educated at the National Public School,then the Brisbane Grammar School. [3]
Commencing as a merchant,he took over the family estate on the death of his father. [4]
He married Pauline Ann Caroline Effey in March 1900, [5] and they had three sons and three daughters: [4] Thomas Blacket (1902–), [6] William (1909–),and Edward Harry (1916–1916);Dorothea Louise (1901–), [7] Ann Pauline (1905–1984),and Marian Victoria (1907–).
From 20 acres (8.1 ha) of land transferred to Stephens by his father in 1886,Stephens built the family residence of Waldheim,off Ipswich Road,Annerley (now 35 Waldheim Street),about 1900 at the cost of €300; [8] 'Waldheim' being a German word for 'home in the forest'. (It is now a Brisbane City Council designated local heritage place. [8] )
In 1882 he was elected as a member of the Yeerongpilly Divisional Board,and later,for thirty-six years,the Nerang Divisonal Board (later the Nerang Shire Council). [4] In 1887 he was elected president of the Metropolitan Traffic Board,and also became an alderman of the south ward,Brisbane. The South and Woolloongabba boards were merged the following year to become the City of South Brisbane,where he became the first mayor,in 1888,1889,and 1901. [4] [3]
Stephens was elected on 12 May 1888 to the Queensland Legislative Assembly in Woolloongabba. In the 1893 colonial election,he successfully contested the seat of South Brisbane which he held until 27 August 1904,when he was defeated in the 1904 state election. He contested South Brisbane again in the 1907 election and was successfully,representing the electorate from 18 May 1907 to 5 February 1908,when he was again defeated in the 1908 election. [9] [10] During this last period,he was Secretary for Public Instruction and Agriculture from 19 November 1907 to 18 February 1908.
In the 1912 election,Stephens unsuccessfully contested Buranda.
On 1 July 1912,he was appointed for life to the Queensland Legislative Council,a position he held until the Council was abolished on 23 March 1922. [9]
Stephens had many business interests in South Brisbane and other areas,including: [3]
Following ill health late in life,Stephens collapsed from a stroke while holidaying at Southport,Queensland on Monday 27 April 1925. He was taken to a private hospital where he died on Thursday 30 April 1925. His funeral left his home Waldheim on Friday 1 May 1925 for his burial at South Brisbane Cemetery. [1] [3] Many prominent citizens attended his funeral. [11]
His brother Thomas Connah Stephens (1868–1937) lived in the same street at Knutsford,on the corner of Waldheim and Blacket Streets. [12] [2]
Stephens also donated a block of land 'to be held in perpetuity for the scout movement' at 63 Waldheim Street,almost opposite the Junction Park State School,upon which was erected a 40 by 32 feet (12.2 m × 9.8 m) two-storey building costing £331,which was opened on Saturday 7 December 1929. [13] [14] It was for the use of the Stephens Boy Scout and Tarragindi Girl Guide groups;Stephens being the locale named for Stephens' father,and Tarragindi being an adjoining suburb. It is now a private residence. [15]
His wife Pauline died on 2 August 1960,aged 85. [16]
Tarragindi is a southern suburb of the City of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. It is represented through the Holland Park and Moorooka Ward councillors on the Brisbane City Council. In the 2021 census,Tarragindi had a population of 11,035 people.
Digby Frank Denham was a politician and businessman in Queensland,Australia. He was a Premier of Queensland and Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. He was the first of only two Queensland Premiers to lose their own seat at a general election.
Dutton Park is an inner southern suburb in the City of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. In the 2021 census,Dutton Park had a population of 2,134 people.
Annerley is a suburb in the City of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. In the 2021 census,Annerley had a population of 11,891 people.
Fairfield is a suburb of the City of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. In the 2021 census,Fairfield had a population of 3,106 people.
Gold Coast Hospital,located at 98–136 Nerang Street,Southport was,from 1960 to 2013 a major teaching and Tertiary referral hospital and the third largest in Queensland. The Gold Coast Hospital had one of the busiest emergency departments in the state. The Hospital admitted over 60,000 patients annually. It was replaced by the Gold Coast University Hospital.
Greenslopes is a southern suburb in the City of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. It is 6.0 kilometres (3.7 mi) by road south of the Brisbane CBD. In the 2021 census,Greenslopes had a population of 7,941 people.
The South Coast railway line was a railway from Brisbane,the capital city of Queensland,Australia. The route via the South Coast to Tweed Heads on the border of Queensland and New South Wales. The line operated from 1889 to 1964. Between 1903 and 1961 steam trains ran from Beenleigh to the NSW border. The Gold Coast railway line re-opened in 1996 along a modified alignment in the north and a new route south but does not extend as far south yet as the South Coast line.
Stones Corner is an inner southern suburb of City of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. In the 2021 census,Stones Corner had a population of 2,336 people.
Thomas Blacket Stephens was a wealthy Brisbane businessman and newspaper proprietor who also served as an alderman and mayor of Brisbane Municipal Council,a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland and a Member of the Queensland Legislative Council.
The Shire of Yeerongpilly was a local government area in the southern suburbs of Brisbane,Queensland. The shire,administered from Rocklea,covered an area of 175 square miles (453 km2),and existed as a local government entity from 1879 until 1925,when it was split up following the creation of the City of Brisbane under the City of Brisbane Act 1924.
The Shire of Stephens was a local government area in the inner southern suburbs of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. The shire,administered from Annerley,covered an area of 9 square miles (23 km2),and existed as a local government entity from 1886 until 1925,when it was amalgamated into the City of Brisbane under the City of Brisbane Act 1924.
The Shire of Tingalpa was a local government area in the south-eastern suburbs of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. The shire,administered from Mount Cotton,covered an area of 120 square miles (311 km2),and existed as a local government entity from 1879 until 1949.
The City of Brisbane is a local government area (LGA) which comprises the inner portion of Greater Brisbane,the capital of Queensland,Australia. Its governing body is the Brisbane City Council.
South Brisbane Cemetery,also known as Dutton Park Cemetery,is a heritage-listed cemetery at 21 Fairfield Road and Annerley Road,Dutton Park,City of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia,adjacent to the Brisbane River. It was built from 1870 to 1990s. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 1 October 2003.
The Shire of Nerang was a local government area in South East Queensland,Australia. The shire existed as a local government entity from 1879 until 1949.
The Town of Coolangatta was a local government area in South East Queensland,Australia,centred on Coolangatta. It existed from 1914 to 1949.
Princess Theatre is a heritage-listed theatre at 8 Annerley Road,Woolloongabba,Queensland,Australia. It was designed by architect John Beauchamp Nicholson and built in 1888. It is also known as South Brisbane Public Hall and Boggo Road Theatre. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 21 October 1992.
Clarence Corner is the junction of Stanley Street and Annerley Road in Woolloongabba/South Brisbane in Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. It gives its name to the local area.
Junction Park State School is a heritage-listed state school at 50 Waldheim Street,Annerley,City of Brisbane,Queensland,Australia. It was built from 1909 to 1910 by the Queensland Department of Public Works and MR Hornibrook. It is also known as the former Thompson Estate State School. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 6 May 2016.