Michael Fenton (1789 – 6 April 1874) was a politician in colonial

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

. He was the first

Speaker of the Tasmanian House of Assembly The Speaker of the Tasmanian House of Assembly is the presiding officer of the lower house of the Parliament of Tasmania. The role of Speaker has traditionally been a partisan office, filled by the governing party of the time. Speakers of the Ta ...

Biography

Michael Fenton was born in Castle Town,

County Sligo County Sligo ( , gle, Contae Shligigh) is a county in Ireland. It is located in the Border Region and is part of the province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the an ...

, Ireland, the third son of Michael Fenton, who served as the high sheriff of Sligo. Fenton was a captain in the 13th Light Infantry Regiment. After service in India and Burma, he sold his commission and emigrated to Tasmania (then

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 ...

) in 1829, settling on a grant of land at Fenton Forest, near Glenora, on the River Derwent. He was appointed a member of the nominee

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, ...

by Sir

John Franklin Sir John Franklin (16 April 1786 – 11 June 1847) was a British Royal Navy officer and Arctic explorer. After serving in wars against Napoleonic France and the United States, he led two expeditions into the Canadian Arctic and through t ...

in 1840, and was one of the "Patriotic Six" who resigned their seats in the Council in order to frustrate the financial policy of Governor John Eardley-Wilmot, in October 1845. However, he was reappointed by royal warrant in March 1847. In 1851 Fenton became one of the first elected members of the Legislative Council, representing New Norfolk. In 1855 he was elected Speaker in succession to Sir

Richard Dry Sir Richard Dry, KCMG (20 September 1815 – 1 August 1869) was an Australian politician, the son of United Irish convict, who was Premier of Tasmania from 24 November 1866 until 1 August 1869 when he died in office. Dry was the first Tasmani ...

. When responsible government was conceded, he entered the House of Assembly for

New Norfolk New Norfolk is a town on the River Derwent, in the south-east of Tasmania, Australia. At the 2011 census, New Norfolk had a population of 5,543. Situated north-west of Hobart on the Lyell Highway, New Norfolk is a modern Australian region ...

and was elected the first Speaker in December 1856. Fenton continued to fill the chair of the House until retiring in May 1861. He was succeeded by

Robert Officer Sir Robert Officer M.A., (3 October 1800 – 8 July 1879) was an Australian politician and medical officer. Early life Officer was the son of Robert Officer, and was born in Dundee, Forfarshire, Scotland, and graduated B.A., and subsequentl ...

Personal

In 1828 Fenton married Elizabeth Campbell, widow of Captain Neil Campbell, also of the 13th Light Infantry at

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

. Her father, Reverend John Russel Knox, was

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of Lifford and Inishmagrath, County Leitrim. They had six children; one son and three daughters survived Fenton. Michael Fenton died at his residence 'Fenton Forest', about 22 kilometres west of New Norfolk, on 6 April 1874 at the age of 85. Elizabeth wrote a journal titled ''A Narrative of Her Life in India, the Isle of France and Tasmania During the Years 1826–1830''. Elizabeth died on 10 March 1876, also at 'Fenton Forest'.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Fenton, Michael 1789 births 1874 deaths Speakers of the Tasmanian House of Assembly Members of the Tasmanian House of Assembly Members of the Tasmanian Legislative Council Irish emigrants to colonial Australia Somerset Light Infantry officers Politicians from County Sligo Irish people of Australian descent 19th-century Australian politicians