Sydney Capel Pigott (25 April 1867 – 29 April 1927) was an Australian businessman and politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

from 1901 to 1904, representing the seat of West Kimberley. Pigott was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

to Eliza Jane (née Fox) and Louis John Pigott. He had moved to

Broome, Western Australia Broome, also known as Rubibi by the Yawuru people, is a coastal pearling and tourist town in the Kimberley region of Western Australia, north of Perth. In the the population was recorded as 14,660. It is the largest town in the Kimberley reg ...

, by 1894, and set up as a

pearler Pearl hunting, also known as pearling, is the activity of recovering pearls from wild molluscs, usually oysters or mussels, in the sea or freshwater. Pearl hunting was prevalent in the Persian Gulf region and Japan for thousands of years. On the ...

, with two ships to his name. He later also purchased a hotel and owned an aerated-water factory.Sydney Capel Pigott
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 6 June 2016. Pigott entered parliament at the 1901 West Kimberley by-election, which had been caused by the death of

Alexander Forrest Alexander Forrest Order of St Michael and St George, CMG (22 September 1849 – 20 June 1901) was an explorer and surveying, surveyor of Western Australia, and later also a member of parliament. As a government surveyor, Forrest explored many ...

. He was opposed by two former MPs, Charles Moran and

Barrington Wood Barrington Clarke Wood (9 May 1850 – 24 August 1903) was an Australian businessman and politician who served in both houses of the Parliament of Western Australia. A minister in the governments of Sir John Forrest and George Throssell, he was ...

, and won by polling just two votes more than Moran. Prior to the 1904 election, Pigott's seat was abolished. He attempted to transfer to the new seat of Kimberley, but was unsuccessful, losing to

Francis Connor Francis Connor (1857 – 24 August 1916) was an Australian businessman, pastoralist, and politician who served in both houses of the Parliament of Western Australia, as a member of the Legislative Assembly from 1893 to 1905 and as a member of ...

. After leaving parliament, Pigott returned to the pearling trade, and also served briefly on the Broome Municipal Council. He moved to London in 1915, setting up as a pearl merchant, and later lived in

Bournemouth Bournemouth () is a coastal resort town in the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole council area of Dorset, England. At the 2011 census, the town had a population of 183,491, making it the largest town in Dorset. It is situated on the Southern ...

and

Hove Hove is a seaside resort and one of the two main parts of the city of Brighton and Hove, along with Brighton in East Sussex, England. Originally a "small but ancient fishing village" surrounded by open farmland, it grew rapidly in the 19th cen ...

. Pigott died in April 1927, aged 60.

Family

In 1900 Sydney married June née Callanan (1857-1912), widow of Richard Bowden Skamp (1849-1890) with whom she had five children. Jane, and two of Sydney's step-daughters - Alice Beatrice Skamp (1882-1912) and Geneviéve Callanan Skamp (1885-1912) - were lost at sea in the ''Koombana'' disaster in 1912. After his Jane's death, in 1916 he married Margaret Robertson née Smith (1879-1918) and had a son, Stanley Capel Pigott (1918-1994). Margaret died a few days after Stanley's birth and Sydney wed a third time the following year, to Jessie Maude Elliott (1878-1965).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pigott, Sydney 1867 births 1927 deaths Australian expatriates in England Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly Pearlers People from Melbourne Western Australian local councillors Businesspeople from Melbourne Politicians from Melbourne