Henry Edward Downer (22 March 1836 – 4 August 1905) was a South Australian politician. He was a brother of Sir John Downer and

George Downer Alexander George Downer (28 January 1839 – 17 August 1916), usually known as George, or A. G. Downer, was a prominent South Australian businessman and a partner with his brother Sir John Downer in the legal firm G & J Downer. History George ...

, and a noted lawyer and businessman. Henry Edward Downer was born in

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council. Portsmouth is the most dens ...

, England and emigrated to Australia in 1838 with his parents Henry (ca.1812 – 25 September 1870) and Jane (ca.1808 – 4 Jan 1861), arriving in Adelaide in June 1838. His father ran a grocery store in

Hindley Street Hindley Street is located in the north-west quarter of the centre of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It runs between King William Street and West Terrace. The street was named after Charles Hindley, a British parliamentarian and soc ...

(at that time Adelaide's premier shopping strip), in 1848 took on as partner Thomas Graves, who bought him out two years later, later was landlord of the Blenheim Hotel on the same street; they lived first at Hindley Street, followed by

South Terrace South Terrace may refer to: *South Terrace, Adelaide, Australia *South Terrace, Fremantle, Australia {{Road disambiguation ...

, then at "St. Bernard's",

Magill ''Magill'' was an Irish politics and current affairs magazine founded by Vincent Browne and others in 1977. ''Magill'' specialised in investigative articles and colourful reportage by journalists such as Eamonn McCann (who wrote its anonymous ' ...

, where he died after a long illness. Henry received an education at Francis Haire's academy and was articled to the legal firm of Wigley & Richman, working for a time as law clerk. He was called to the Bar in 1859. He was appointed Commissioner for Insolvency in 1865 and filled that position until 1881 when he resigned in order to contest the

South Australian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assembly was creat ...

for the seat of Encounter Bay. He entered Parliament in 1881 and held the seat until 1896, for two of those terms in conjunction with

Simpson Newland Simpson Newland CMG (2 November 1835 – 27 June 1925), pastoralist, author and politician, was a pioneer in Australia who made significant contributions to development around the Murray River. He was also an author of practical works and novel ...

. He was appointed Attorney-General of South Australia in May 1890 in the Cockburn ministry, succeeding F. F. Turner (solicitor to the Lands Titles Office; a temporary appointment of April that year following the defeat at the polls of B. A. Moulden), and lost the post with the swearing-in of the Playford government the following year. His political achievements included: *conversion of the Strathalbyn to Victor Harbor horse tramway to steam locomotive. *amendments to Insolvency laws *amendments to Rent laws in 1883 to protect tenants He was an active Freemason and office-holder of the Anglican Church. He was a keen horseman and twice appointed master of the Adelaide Hunt Club.

Family

H. E. Downer married Maria Martin Haggar ( – 11 January 1912) on 13 August 1859. They had a home "Lyndhurst" on South Terrace, Adelaide. Their children included: *Ada Louisa Downer (23 November 1860 – 1941) married Otto Heinrich Schomburgk (1857–1938), son of Moritz Richard Schomburgk, on 17 September 1892 *Alice Maria Downer (12 June 1862 – ) married Charles Herbert Warren (c. 1856 – 6 November 1917) on 7 February 1891. :*(Constance) Jean Warren (1891–1977) married the widower

Lavington Bonython Sir John Lavington Bonython (10 September 1875 – 6 November 1960) was a prominent public figure in Adelaide, known for his work in journalism, business and politics. In association with his father, he became involved in the management of n ...

on 11 December 1912. She was later well known as Lady Bonython OBE. They had three children:

Warren A warren is a network of wild rodent or lagomorph, typically rabbit burrows. Domestic warrens are artificial, enclosed establishment of animal husbandry dedicated to the raising of rabbits for meat and fur. The term evolved from the medieval Angl ...

, Katherine and Kym. :She married again, to the widower

Samuel Bruce Rudall Samuel Bruce Rudall (7 March 1859 – 3 January 1945) was a lawyer and politician of the State of South Australia. History Samuel was the elder surviving son of the John Rudall, the first town clerk of Gawler, and the first solicitor to practise ...

(7 March 1859 – 3 January 1945), on 6 October 1923. *Frank Hagger Downer (18 October 1863 – 19 March 1938) married Charlotte Mary Murray (died 15 September 1920), youngest daughter of

A. B. Murray Alexander Borthwick Murray (14 February 1816 – 17 March 1903) was an Australian sheep breeder and parliamentarian in the early days of South Australia. He married his business partner Margaret Tinline after they had established a successful s ...

on 8 August 1900 *(Harold) Charles Downer (24 August 1865 – 27 December 1921) married Bertha Law Smith ( – 11 July 1947) on 17 February 1909. He was manager of Melton station. He died at the home of his son-in-law Otto Schomburgk.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Downer, Henry Edward Members of the South Australian House of Assembly Attorneys-General of South Australia 19th-century Australian lawyers 1836 births 1905 deaths 19th-century Australian politicians English emigrants to colonial Australia Downer family

Family

See also

References