Henry Grattan Douglass (1790 – 1 December 1865) was an Irish-born Australian medical doctor and politician. He was born in

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of th ...

to apothecary Adam Douglass and Ann Edwards. He studied medicine and qualified fully in 1819. In 1812 he married Hester Murphy, with whom he had three children. In 1821 he migrated to

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

and became in charge of a hospital at

Parramatta Parramatta () is a suburb and major Central business district, commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district on the ban ...

, also conducting his own private practice. He was a supporter of the faction known as 'the Exclusives'—wealthy landholders who supported Governor

Ralph Darling General Sir Ralph Darling, GCH (1772 – 2 April 1858) was a British Army officer who served as Governor of New South Wales from 1825 to 1831. He is popularly described as a tyrant, accused of torturing prisoners and banning theatrical entertain ...

—and was made Clerk of the Legislative Council and Commissioner of the Court of Requests. These appointments enraged the opposing 'Emancipists' faction, who thought him unqualified for these roles and just another beneficiary of what they viewed as the favouritism and cronyism of Darling's administration. Paradoxically, as a result of his political involvement, he fell out with Darling. Douglass was given a grant of land, near to the

Endrick River Endrick River is a perennial river of the Shoalhaven catchment located in the Southern Tablelands region of New South Wales, Australia. Location and features Endrick River rises below Quiltys Mountain on the western slopes of the Budawang Range ...

, in the area now known as

Nerriga Nerriga is a small village in the Southern Tablelands of New South Wales, Australia in Queanbeyan-Palerang Regional Council. It is situated at the edge of Morton National Park, on the Braidwood - Nowra road. The population of Nerriga and the ...

. However, after, probably unwisely, he had become involved in the political manoeuvres of the colony he effectively had been forced to leave the colony—temporarily it transpired—by Governor Darling. Douglass's land grant was then cancelled, in his absence, by Darling, and it was then granted to another settler, John Mackenzie, in June 1836. He was involved in the foundation of the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD), also known as Sydney University, or informally Sydney Uni, is a public research university located in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in Australia and is one of the country's si ...

and was also a tenant on 7,800 acres of crown land. From 1851 to 1856 he was an elected member of 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 ...

; he was also a member of the reconstituted Council from 1856 to 1861. Douglass died 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 ...

in 1865.

References

1790 births 1865 deaths Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council 19th-century Australian politicians 19th-century Australian public servants {{Australia-politician-stub