Thomas Bennett (October 15, 1788 – February 12, 1872) was a magistrate and political figure in

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

. Born in

Shaftesbury Shaftesbury () is a town and civil parish in Dorset, England. It is situated on the A30 road, west of Salisbury, near the border with Wiltshire. It is the only significant hilltop settlement in Dorset, being built about above sea level on a ...

Dorsetshire Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , Do ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, Bennett first worked for the

British government ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd , image = HM Government logo.svg , image_size = 220px , image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg , image_size2 = 180px , caption = Royal Arms , date_es ...

in the Commissariat Department and moved to St. John's, Newfoundland, in the early 1820s to work in his brother

Charles Charles is a masculine given name predominantly found in English language, English and French language, French speaking countries. It is from the French form ''Charles'' of the Proto-Germanic, Proto-Germanic name (in runic alphabet) or ''*k ...

' mercantile business. Both brothers became important members of the business community and his brother later served as Premier of Newfoundland. In 1828, Bennett married Hannah Hutchings. He entered politics in 1832 running for

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 ...

for

Twillingate Twillingate is a town of 2,121 people located on the Twillingate Islands ("Toulinquet") in Notre Dame Bay, off the north eastern shore of the island of Newfoundland in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. The town is about north of ...

and Fogo. He became Speaker of the House of Assembly in 1834 opposing

William Carson Sir William Carson (baptised 4 June 1770 – 26 February 1843), often called "The Great Reformer", was a medical doctor and businessman in Newfoundland. Carson's primary contribution to Newfoundland was the application of modern agricultural ...

as a conservative supporter and remained as speaker until 1837 when he did not run for election. Bennett also held a number of appointed positions in the government after he chose not to run for further office. He was chosen for these appointments because the governor, Sir

John Harvey John Harvey may refer to: People Academics * John Harvey (astrologer) (1564–1592), English astrologer and physician * John Harvey (architectural historian) (1911–1997), British architectural historian, who wrote on English Gothic architecture ...

, wanted both brothers to be part of the newly formed government. Bennett remained active in politics until he was appointed as a

stipendiary magistrate Stipendiary magistrates were magistrates that were paid for their work (they received a stipend). They existed in the judiciaries of the United Kingdom and those of several former British territories, where they sat in the lowest-level criminal ...

, remaining in that post until his retirement in 1870. In 1870, after his brother Charles became

Premier of Newfoundland The premier of Newfoundland and Labrador is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. Since 1949, the premier's duties and office has been the successor to the ministerial position of the pri ...

, Thomas returned to England. He died in Shaftesbury at the age of 83.

References

*''Encyclopedia of Newfoundland and Labrador'', volume 1, Smallwood, Joseph Roberts, 1900-, Pitt, Robert D. W., 1953-, Newfoundland Book Publishers (1967) Ltd., St. John's, 1981

External links

Biography at the ''Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Thomas (Newfoundland politician) Speakers of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly 1788 births 1872 deaths Newfoundland Colony judges People from Shaftesbury English emigrants to pre-Confederation Newfoundland