Captain John Hart CMG (25 February 1809 – 28 January 1873) was a

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

n politician and a

Premier of South Australia The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...

Early life

The son of journalist/newspaper publisher John Harriott Hart and Mary Hart ''née'' Glanville, John was born on 25 February 1809 probably at 23 Warwick Lane off Newgate Street, London, and baptised at

Christ Church Greyfriars Christ Church Greyfriars, also known as Christ Church Newgate Street, was a church in Newgate Street, opposite St Paul's Cathedral in the City of London. Established as a monastic church in the thirteenth century, it became a parish church af ...

, London. At 12 years of age he first went to sea, visiting

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 ...

Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania used by the British during the European exploration of Australia in the 19th century. A British settlement was established in Van Diemen's Land in 1803 before it became a sepa ...

(now

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

, Australia) in September 1828 in the ''Magnet''. In 1832 Hart was in command of the schooner ''Elizabeth'', a sealer operating from Tasmania and visiting

Kangaroo Island Kangaroo Island, also known as Karta Pintingga (literally 'Island of the Dead' in the language of the Kaurna people), is Australia's third-largest island, after Tasmania and Melville Island. It lies in the state of South Australia, southwest ...

and

Gulf St Vincent Gulf St Vincent, sometimes referred to as St Vincent Gulf, St Vincent's Gulf or Gulf of St Vincent, is the eastern of two large inlets of water on the southern coast of Australia, in the state of South Australia, the other being the larger Sp ...

. In 1833 he took

Edward Henty Edward Henty (28 March 1810 – 14 August 1878), was a pioneer British colonist and is regarded as the first permanent settler in the Port Phillip district (later known as the colony of Victoria), Australia. Early life and family background E ...

to and from

Portland Bay Portland Bay ( Dhauwurdwurrung: ''Kardermudelar / Pathowwererer'') is a small bay off the coast of Victoria, Australia. It is about west of Melbourne. The city of Portland is located on the bay. The western end of the bay is marked by the he ...

. In 1836 he was sent to London to purchase another vessel, and returning in the ''Isabella'' took the first livestock from Tasmania to South Australia in 1837. On the return voyage the ''Isabella'' was wrecked off Cape Nelson and Hart lost everything he had. Early January 1838 he was "on the

River Murray The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest ...

near Mount Hope" (perhaps the Lachlan near

Hillston Hillston is a township in western New South Wales, Australia, in Carrathool Shire, on the banks of the Lachlan River. It was founded in 1863 and at the had a population of 1,465. History John Oxley and his exploration party were the first Eu ...

) and foresaw the great thoroughfare it would become in the second half of that century. He went to

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

and John B. Hack sent him to Sydney to buy a vessel in which he brought stock to Portland Bay. Some of this stock he successfully brought overland to South Australia. Hack also gave Hart two acres (0.8 ha) of land in

. In 1839 he managed a

whaling station Whaling is the process of hunting of whales for their usable products such as meat and blubber, which can be turned into a type of oil that became increasingly important in the Industrial Revolution. It was practiced as an organized industry a ...

Encounter Bay Encounter Bay is a bay in the Australian state of South Australia located on the state's south central coast about south of the state capital of Adelaide. It was named by Matthew Flinders after his encounter on 8 April 1802 with Nicolas Baud ...

. In January 1843 Hart sailed to England in command of the South Australian Company's ageing barque ''Sarah and Elizabeth'', delivering it to London for sale. Aboard as a passenger was the explorer

John Hill John Hill may refer to: Business * John Henry Hill (1791–1882), American businessman, educator and missionary * John Hill (planter) (1824–1910), Scottish-born American industrialist and planter * John Hill (businessman) (1847–1926), Austral ...

, from whom Hart had just purchased Section 2112 at Port Adelaide, in partnership with Jacob Hagen. In December 1843 Hart returned to Adelaide in command of the barque ''Augustus'' of which he was part owner with Jacob Hagen and Hagen's brother. Among the passengers was the artist

George French Angas George French Angas (25 April 1822 – 4 October 1886), also known as G.F.A., was an English explorer, naturalist, painter and poet who emigrated to Australia. His paintings are held in a number of important Australian public art collections. ...

. After another voyage to England he gave up the sea in 1846, and settled near

Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is the main port for the ...

, where he joined with H. Kent Hughes as merchants Hughes and Hart then, as Hart & Company, established large and successful flour mills. His flour mill at the Port was regarded as one of the best, and "Hart's Flour" commanded the highest prices in Australia. John Hart & Co. merged with the Adelaide Milling Company in 1882. He was a member of the Agricultural and Horticultural Society and its president from 1858 to 1859. He became interested in copper mining, and some imputations having been made of underhand dealings in connection with leases, challenged inquiry. A select committee completely exonerated Hart stating that his conduct in every particular had been that of a strictly honourable and upright man.

Political career

Hart took an interest in public affairs, in 1851 was elected to the Legislative Council. Hart resigned in 1853 to visit England and was re-elected the next year, serving until the Council expired in 1857. In 1857 Hart became a member for

in the first

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible governme ...

. He was

Treasurer of South Australia The Treasurer of South Australia is the Cabinet minister in the Government of South Australia who is responsible for the financial management of that state's budget sector. The Urban Renewal Authority, trading as Renewal SA, lies within the T ...

in the

Baker A baker is a tradesperson who bakes and sometimes sells breads and other products made of flour by using an oven or other concentrated heat source. The place where a baker works is called a bakery. History Ancient history Since grains ha ...

ministry which lasted only a few days in August 1857, and held the same position in the

Hanson Hanson or Hansson may refer to: People * Hanson (surname) * Hansson (surname) * Hanson (wrestler), ringname of an American professional wrestler Musical groups * Hanson (band), an American pop rock band * Hanson (UK band), an English rock ...

cabinet from 30 September 1857 to 12 June 1858 when he resigned. Hart was chief secretary in the short-lived first Dutton ministry in July 1863, and was Treasurer in the first and second

Ayers Ayers may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * A.D. Ayers, American baseball umpire (National League) * Aaron Ayers (1836–1900), New Zealand auctioneer and politician * Bill Ayers (born 1944), American academic and activist * Bill Ayers (baseball) (1919� ...

ministries, and the first Blyth ministry from July 1863 to March 1865. Hart became premier and chief secretary from 23 October 1865 to 28 March 1866 at which date he also resigned from parliament. Hart was member for

Light Light or visible light is electromagnetic radiation that can be perceived by the human eye. Visible light is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400–700 nanometres (nm), corresponding to frequencies of 750–420 tera ...

from May 1868 to April 1870. including a second short stint as premier from 24 September 1868 to 13 October 1868. At the 1870 election, Hart changed seats to represent The Burra, the seat he retained until his death. He was premier and Treasurer again from 30 May 1870 to 10 November 1871. One newspaper obituary gave the opinion that Hart had been unfairly criticised in several of his decisions (and had been subsequently vindicated) and should have been given credit for the

Overland Telegraph Line The Australian Overland Telegraph Line was a telegraphy system to send messages over long distances using cables and electric signals. It spanned between Darwin, in what is now the Northern Territory of Australia, and Adelaide, the capital o ...

rather than Sir

Henry Ayers Sir Henry Ayers (now pron. "airs") (1 May 1821 – 11 June 1897) was the eighth Premier of South Australia, serving a record five times between 1863 and 1873. His lasting memorial is in the name Ayers Rock, also known as Uluru, which was en ...

Death

John Hart died suddenly on 28 January 1873, while chairing the third annual general meeting of the Mercantile Marine Insurance Company at the Adelaide Town Hall, leaving a widow and a large family.Heaton, J. H. ''Australian Dictionary of Dates and Men of the Time'' George Robertson, Sydney, 1879

Recognition

Hart was created C.M.G. in 1870.

Family

John Hart married Margaret Gillmor Todd ( Abt. 1815 – 1876) fourth daughter of

Charles Hawkes Todd Charles Hawkes Todd (6 November 1784 – 19 March 1826) Cameron, Sir Charles A. (1886''History of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland, and of the Irish Schools of Medicine &c''Dublin: Fannin & Co. pp. 375-377. was a medical doctor and the pre ...

and Elizabeth Bentley (and sister of

James Henthorn Todd James Henthorn Todd (23 April 1805 – 28 June 1869) was a biblical scholar, educator, and Irish historian. He is noted for his efforts to place religious disagreements on a rational historical footing, for his advocacy of a liberal form of Prote ...

Robert Bentley Todd Robert Bentley Todd (9 April 1809 – 30 January 1860) was an Irish-born physician who is best known for describing the condition postictal paralysis in his Lumleian Lectures in 1849 now known as Todd's palsy. Early life The son of physicia ...

William Gowan Todd William Gowan Todd (1820–1877) was a nineteenth-century author and cleric. In the later years of his life he founded and managed St. Mary's Orphanage, Blackheath, England, where he died on 24 July 1877. Early life The son of physician and pre ...

, and

Armstrong Todd Armstrong Todd (1826–1873) was a nineteenth-century London surgeon credited with researching new medical conditions and procedures, including anesthetics. Early life The son of physician and president of the Royal College of Surgeons in Irel ...

) on 12 May 1845; among their two sons and five daughters were: *Elizabeth Sarah Hart (9 March 1846 – 3 June 1908) married Henry Brook Dobbin (ca.1840 – 22 July 1873) on 3 July 1867 *Margaret Hart (14 May 1847 – 2 August 1920) married Arthur Powell; she founded St. Margaret's Home for convalescents, Semaphore. * John Hart, Jr. (16 July 1848 – 15 August 1881) married Emily Lavinia Finch (1849 – 5 October 1939) on 8 August 1877; he was MHA for

1880–1881. He died at Wooton Lea, Glen Osmond *Mary Hart (9 September 1849 – 16 April 1915) married Henry Huth Walters (March 1841 – ) on 14 October 1868 *Charles Hawkes Todd Hart (19 November 1850 – ) was manager Port Adelaide flour mill 1873, may have returned to England. *Annie Hart (12 August 1852 – 1 December 1913) married Rowland James Egerton-Warburton (4 February 1846 – 1918) on 14 May 1872. Rowland was a son of Colonel Peter Egerton-Warburton.Mosley, Charles, editor. Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knightage, 107th edition, 3 volumes. Wilmington, Delaware, U.S.A.: Burke's Peerage (Genealogical Books) Ltd, 2003. Vol. 2, p.1675 *Katherine Hart (ca.1856 – 21 April 1904) married Algernon Arbuthnott Godwin on 9 January 1879

References

Sources

*Sally O'Neill,
Hart, John (1809–1873)
, ''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

'', Volume 4, Melbourne University Press, 1972, pp 355–356. Retrieved 22 January 2009 * * , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hart, John 1809 births 1873 deaths Premiers of South Australia Settlers of South Australia Australian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Members of the South Australian Legislative Council Members of the South Australian House of Assembly Treasurers of South Australia People from the City of London English emigrants to colonial Australia Australian flour millers and merchants 19th-century Australian politicians Australian people in whaling Australian ship owners Sealers 19th-century Australian businesspeople