Hovenden Hely (1823 – 8 October 1872) was an Australian explorer and politician. He was a member of the
New South Wales Legislative Assembly
The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament Ho ...
for one term between 1856 and 1857.
Early life
Hely was the son of
Frederick Augustus Hely, an Irish public servant who was appointed as the Superintendent of Convicts in 1823. He was educated at
The King's School, Parramatta
, motto_translation = "Bravely and Faithfully"
, streetaddress = 87–129 Pennant Hills Road
, city = North Parramatta, Sydney
, state = New South Wales
, country = Australia
, coordinat ...
and was initially employed as a clerk in the
Colonial Secretary's office. He took part in the 1846-47 expedition of
Ludwig Leichhardt
Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Leichhardt (), known as Ludwig Leichhardt, (23 October 1813 – c. 1848) was a German explorer and naturalist, most famous for his exploration of northern and central Australia.Ken Eastwood,'Cold case: Leichhardt's dis ...
but was accused by Leichhardt of indolence, disloyalty and "disgusting" behaviour. Nonetheless, he was put in charge of the official expedition to find Leichhardt in 1852. After 1841 Hely managed his deceased father's estates in the
Brisbane Water
Brisbane Water is a wave-dominated barrier estuary located in the Central Coast region, north of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Brisbane Water has its origin at the confluence of the Narara and Coorumbine Creeks, to the south–east ...
district including
Wyoming Cottage
Wyoming Cottage is a heritage-listed residence at 1 Wyoming Road, Cnr. Pacific Highway, Wyoming, Central Coast, New South Wales, Australia. It was designed by John Verge and built with convict labour. The suburb Wyoming is named for the Cotta ...
. He inherited a fifth share of the estate when he turned 21 and borrowed heavily against it, to finance a trip to England in 1858. As a result of these debts, Hely was bankrupted in 1865.
Colonial Parliament
In
1856
Events
January–March
* January 8 – Borax deposits are discovered in large quantities by John Veatch in California.
* January 23 – American paddle steamer SS ''Pacific'' leaves Liverpool (England) for a transatlantic voya ...
Hely was elected as one of the three members for
Northumberland and Hunter in the first New South Wales Legislative Assembly under responsible government.
His parliamentary performance was uninspiring and he did not hold office. He did not contest the next election in
1858
Events
January–March
* January –
** Benito Juárez (1806–1872) becomes Liberal President of Mexico. At the same time, conservatives install Félix María Zuloaga (1813–1898) as president.
** William I of Prussia becomes regen ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hely, Hovendon
1823 births
1872 deaths
Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
19th-century Australian politicians
People from Tullamore, County Offaly
Irish emigrants to colonial Australia
People educated at The King's School, Parramatta
19th-century deaths from tuberculosis
Tuberculosis deaths in Australia
Infectious disease deaths in New South Wales