Geoffrey Eagar (17 December 1818 – 12 September 1891) was an accountant and colonial politician and civil servant in New South Wales, Australia.

Early life

Eagar was born in

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

, son of Jemima McDuel and

Edward Edward is an English given name. It is derived from the Anglo-Saxon name ''Ēadweard'', composed of the elements '' ēad'' "wealth, fortune; prosperous" and '' weard'' "guardian, protector”. History The name Edward was very popular in Anglo-Sa ...

, a lawyer, emancipated convict and merchant. Edward left Australia in 1821, while Geoffrey was still an infant, to take a legal battle over the rights of freed convicts to London, and did not return. His mother Jemima then married

William Wentworth William Charles Wentworth (August 179020 March 1872) was an Australian pastoralist, explorer, newspaper editor, lawyer, politician and author, who became one of the wealthiest and most powerful figures of early colonial New South Wales. Throug ...

, and gave birth to a son. In 1843 he married Mary Ann Bucknell, and the couple had 4 children.

Politics

Eagar worked as an accountant at the

Bank of New South Wales The Bank of New South Wales (BNSW), also known commonly as The Wales, was the first bank in Australia, being established in Sydney in 1817 and situated on Broadway, New South Wales, Broadway. During the 19th century, the bank opened branches ...

from 1854 for around five years before resigning to accept an appointment to the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...

in September 1859. The following month he was appointed Secretary for Public Works and Representative of the Government in the Legislative Council in the

Forster ministry The Forster ministry was the fifth ministry of the New South Wales, Colony of New South Wales, and was led by William Forster (Australian politician), William Forster. Forster was elected in the first free elections for the New South Wales Legi ...

, serving until the ministry's defeat in March 1860. He resigned from the Council in November 1860, to contest the election for The Glebe, but he finished a distant 3rd. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly at the by-election in January 1863 for the seat of West Sydney. He was appointed

Colonial Treasurer Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 au ...

in the first Martin ministry in October 1863. He lost his seat at the 1864 election for West Sydney, and was unsuccessful at election for the Paterson. He was returned to the Legislative Assembly at the West Sydney by-election in July 1865, and in January 1866 was appointed Colonial Treasurer in the second Martin ministry, serving until the resignation of the ministry in October 1868. Eagar lost his seat again at the 1869 election for West Sydney, and was unsuccessful at the Hastings, and Goldfields West.

Later life

After leaving parliament he was appointed head of the

New South Wales Treasury The Treasury of New South Wales, branded NSW Treasury, a department of the New South Wales Government, is responsible for state financial management policy and reporting, and providing advice to the government on economic conditions and issues ...

from 1872, until his retirement in February 1891. Eagar died at his home in the Sydney suburb of

Glebe Point Glebe Point is a point on Sydney Harbour in the suburb of Glebe, New South Wales, Glebe, in the Inner West (Sydney), Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. External links GlebeNet: Information for Residents and Visitor ...

, survived by his wife and three of their four children, Arthur, a bank manager, Ernest a civil servant and a daughter. He also had a house in the Blue Mountains, opposite Eagar's Platform, now called

Valley Heights railway station Valley Heights railway station is a heritage-listed railway station located on the Main Western railway line, Main Western line in Valley Heights, New South Wales, Valley Heights, in the City of Blue Mountains local government area of New South ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Eagar, Geoffrey Politicians from Sydney Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council Treasurers of New South Wales Australian accountants 1818 births 1891 deaths 19th-century Australian politicians 19th-century Australian public servants 19th-century Australian businesspeople