Vernon Hamersley (1871–1946) was an

Australian Australian(s) may refer to: Australia * Australia, a country * Australians, citizens of the Commonwealth of Australia ** European Australians ** Anglo-Celtic Australians, Australians descended principally from British colonists ** Aboriginal Au ...

politician. He served the longest term ever as a Member of the

Western Australian Legislative Council The Western Australian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Western Australia, a state of Australia. It is regarded as a house of review for legislation passed by the Legislative Assembly, the lower house. The two Houses ...

Biography

Early life

Vernon Hamersley was born in

Guildford, Western Australia Guildford is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, 12 km northeast of the city centre within the City of Swan. Guildford was founded in 1829 as one of the earliest settlements of the Swan River Colony. It is one of only three towns in the ...

. The son of

Samuel Hamersley Samuel Richard Hamersley (1842–1896) was a Western Australian pastoralist, and a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council for six years. Biography Early life Samuel Hamersley was born in Guildford, Western Australia on 12 Octobe ...

, he was a member of the prominent and well-connected

Hamersley family The Hamersley family were a wealthy and well-connected family of early settlers in the colony of Western Australia. Members of the Hamersley family emigrated to Western Australia from England in 1837. Prominent members and connections of the fa ...

. His grandfather was Edward Hamersley (Snr); among his uncles was

Edward Hamersley (Jnr) Edward Hamersley (1 September 1835 or 1836 – 14 January 1921) was a Western Australian pastoralist, and a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council for nearly ten years. Biography Early life Edward Hamersley was born in Paris ...

and

Maitland Brown Maitland Brown (17 July 18438 July 1905) was an explorer, politician and pastoralist in colonial Western Australia. He is known as the leader of the La Grange expedition and massacre, which searched for and recovered the bodies of three colon ...

; and he was related by blood or marriage to many prominent Western Australians including

John Forrest Sir John Forrest (22 August 1847 – 2 SeptemberSome sources give the date as 3 September 1918 1918) was an Australian explorer and politician. He was the first premier of Western Australia (1890–1901) and a long-serving cabinet minister i ...

and

William Locke Brockman William Locke Brockman (1802 – 28 November 1872) was an early settler in Western Australia, who became a leading pastoralist and stock breeder, and a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council. Biography Born in Kent, England in 1 ...

. He was educated at

Guildford Grammar School Guildford Grammar School, informally known as Guildford Grammar, Guildford or GGS, is an independent Anglican coeducational primary and secondary day and boarding school, located in Guildford, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Initia ...

, before continuing his studies in

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 ...

at the

Magdalen College Magdalen College (, ) is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. It was founded in 1458 by William of Waynflete. Today, it is the fourth wealthiest college, with a financial endowment of £332.1 million as of 2019 and one of the st ...

School at

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, and the

Downton Agricultural College Professor John Wrightson Chemical Society, FCS, Royal Agricultural University, MRAC (1840 – 30 November 1916) was a British agriculturalist and the founder of Downton Agricultural College (1880–1906) at Downton, Wiltshire, Downton in Wilts ...

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

Career

He returned to Western Australia in 1889, spending some time on the

Eastern goldfields The Eastern Goldfields is part of the Western Australian Goldfields in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, covering the present and former gold-mining area east of Perth. Extent and name origin The region encompasses the town ...

, before farming with his father at

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

until 1895. On the death of his grandfather in 1874, he inherited the station ''Hasely'' in Toodyay, which he developed as a farm and stud. He also became a part owner of Mount Barnett cattle station in the

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia * Kimberley (Western Australia) ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley * Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania * Kimberley, Tasmania a small town * County of Kimberley, a ...

. In 1895, he married Clara Hicks. He first became active in public life in 1899, becoming a member of the Toodyay Road Board. He would later become its chairman before retiring his membership in 1906. In 1900 he became a

Justice of the Peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

, and the following year he unsuccessfully contested the Legislative Assembly seat of Toodyay as an independent. On 5 August 1904, he won the Legislative Council seat of East Province in a

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

following the death of Edward Keane. He would be returned to the seat in the next six elections, holding the seat until his death. He joined the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

in 1911. He won the May 1916 election by a single vote. Upon a recount, both Hamersley and his opponent, Michael McCabe of the Country Party, had attained 1,651 votes each, and Hamersley was elected on the

casting vote A casting vote is a vote that someone may exercise to resolve a tied vote in a deliberative body. A casting vote is typically by the presiding officer of a council, legislative body, committee, etc., and may only be exercised to break a deadlock ...

of the Returning Officer. McCabe then petitioned the Court of Disputed Returns against Hamersley's election, with the result that the election was declared null and void. Hamersley appealed to the full court, but the appeal was dismissed. A by-election was subsequently held on 2 September 1916, with Hamersley winning re-election on a significantly higher turnout. After 1920, he held his seat for the Country Party, and from April 1921 he was

Father of the House Father of the House is a title that has been traditionally bestowed, unofficially, on certain members of some legislatures, most notably the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. In some legislatures the title refers to the longest continuously- ...

Death

He died in West Perth on 24 October 1946. His term of 42 years, 2 months and 19 days remains the longest ever term as a member of the Western Australian Legislative Council.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hamersley, Vernon 1871 births 1946 deaths Politicians from Perth, Western Australia People from Toodyay, Western Australia People educated at Guildford Grammar School Alumni of Magdalen College, Oxford Western Australian local councillors Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council National Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia