James Reid Scott (1 April 1839 – 25 August 1877) was an explorer and colonial

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

n politician, member of the

Tasmanian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Legislative Council or Upper House. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Hobart. The Assembly has 25 m ...

and later the

Tasmanian Legislative Council The Tasmanian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. It is one of the two chambers of the Parliament, the other being the House of Assembly. Both houses sit in Parliament House in the state capital, H ...

, he was also

Colonial Secretary of Tasmania The Colonial Secretary of Van Diemen's Land (later Colonial Secretary of Tasmania) was the representative of the British Colonial Office in Van Diemen's Land (later Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map ...

. Scott was the elder son of

Thomas Scott Thomas Scott may refer to: Australia * Thomas Hobbes Scott (1783–1860), Anglican clergyman and first Archdeacon of New South Wales * Thomas Scott (Australian politician) (1865–1946), member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly * Thomas Sco ...

, a former Assistant Surveyor-General of Tasmania, and his wife Ann, ''née'' Reid. Scott was born in

Earlston Earlston ( sco, Yerlston; gd, Dùn Airchill) is a civil parish and market town in the county of Berwickshire, within the Scottish Borders. It is on the River Leader in Lauderdale, Scotland. Early history Earlston was originally called ''Arc ...

Berwickshire Berwickshire ( gd, Siorrachd Bhearaig) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area in south-eastern Scotland, on the English border. Berwickshire County Council existed from 1890 until 1975, when the area became part of th ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

Gattonside Gattonside is a small village in the Scottish Borders. It is located north of Melrose, on the north side of the River Tweed. In 1143, the lands of Gattonside were granted to the monks of Melrose Abbey by King David I. Gattonside was the home o ...

, Melrose. Scott was educated as a surveyor, but never practised his profession. Scott made many exploring expeditions in the western and north-east districts of Tasmania, and did valuable work in mapping the Western Highlands of the colony. Accounts of some of his explorations appear in the Transactions of the

Royal Society of Tasmania The Royal Society of Tasmania (RST) was formed in 1843. It was the first Royal Society outside the United Kingdom, and its mission is the advancement of knowledge. The work of the Royal Society of Tasmania includes: * Promoting Tasmanian historic ...

for the years 1872 and 1875. Scott represented the district of

Selby Selby is a market town and civil parish in the Selby District of North Yorkshire, England, south of York on the River Ouse, with a population at the 2011 census of 14,731. The town was historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire until ...

in the House of Assembly from October 1866 to November 1872. On accepting office as Colonial Secretary in the

Frederick Innes Frederick Maitland Innes (11 August 1816 – 11 May 1882)C. M. Sullivan,, ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 4, MUP, 1972, pp 458–459. Retrieved 2009-08-15 was Premier of Tasmania from 4 November 1872 to 4 August 1873. The son of ...

Ministry on 4 November 1872, he resigned his seat in the Assembly, and was elected to the Legislative Council for the

Electoral division of South Esk The Electoral division of South Esk was an electoral division in the Tasmanian Legislative Council of Australia. It existed from 1856 to 1999, when it was renamed Electoral division of Apsley, Apsley. It took its name from the South Esk River. Mem ...

. He held the office of Colonial Secretary until the retirement of the Innes Ministry on 4 August 1873. Scott died at

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

on 25 August 1877.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scott, James Reid 1839 births 1877 deaths Members of the Tasmanian House of Assembly Members of the Tasmanian Legislative Council Colonial Secretaries of Tasmania 19th-century Australian politicians