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William Henry Campbell was a politician and newspaper editor/
proprietor Ownership is the state or fact of legal possession and control over property, which may be any asset, tangible or intangible. Ownership can involve multiple rights, collectively referred to as title, which may be separated and held by different ...
in
Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...
, Australia. He was a
Member of the Queensland Legislative Council Following are lists of members of the Queensland Legislative Council The Queensland Legislative Council was the upper house of the parliament in the Australian state of Queensland. It was a fully nominated body which first took office on 1 May ...
.


Early life

William Henry Campbell was born on 18 July 1846 at
Jersey Jersey ( , ; nrf, Jèrri, label= Jèrriais ), officially the Bailiwick of Jersey (french: Bailliage de Jersey, links=no; Jèrriais: ), is an island country and self-governing Crown Dependency near the coast of north-west France. It is the l ...
in the
Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
, the son of Major-General Charles Stewart Campbell and his wife Elizabeth Charlotte (née Dale). His father was wounded at the
Battle of Waterloo The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...
and was retired. The family moved to England where William Campbell attended private primary schools and Bluecoat School, a military school. He had a natural artistic skill, which he used to create pencil caricatures as well as oil and watercolour paintings. At the age of about sixteen, William Campbell accompanied one of his brothers to New Zealand during the
New Zealand Wars The New Zealand Wars took place from 1845 to 1872 between the New Zealand colonial government and allied Māori on one side and Māori and Māori-allied settlers on the other. They were previously commonly referred to as the Land Wars or the ...
. William studied the Māori language and acted as an interpreter for his brother's regiment. After that, he went to Queensland and made his way to the Palmer River Goldfields near
Cooktown Cooktown is a coastal town and locality in the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. Cooktown is at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the Endeavour, for repai ...
. There he contracted a fever which made him an invalid for months. While in North Queensland, he met Spencer Browne who had newspaper interests in Cooktown where the brothers Charles John James and Frederic Robert James were working. William Campbell contributed numerous articles on various subjects to this newspaper. William Campbell then travelled to
New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...
where he wrote and sketched for a number of newspapers. Sir
Henry Parkes Sir Henry Parkes, (27 May 1815 – 27 April 1896) was a colonial Australian politician and longest non-consecutive Premier of the Colony of New South Wales, the present-day state of New South Wales in the Commonwealth of Australia. He has ...
liked his work and offered him an appointment at a salary of £1000 a year on one of his newspapers. He also travelled to Victoria and worked for a time on ''The Argus'', a
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 ...
newspaper.


Business life

In the early 1870s, William Campbell arrived in
Blackall, Queensland Blackall is a rural town and locality in the Blackall-Tambo Region, Queensland, Australia. In the the locality of Blackall had a population of 1,416 people. The town is the service centre for the Blackall-Tambo Region. The dominant industr ...
, where he joined Mr Monahan in establishing a newspaper, ''
The Western Champion ''The Western Champion'' was a newspaper published initially in Blackall and later in nearby Barcaldine, Queensland, Australia. History The newspaper was initially published under the name ''The Western Champion'' from 1879 to 1891 by J. Mon ...
''. However, Mr Monahan retired soon after and William Campbell continued to run the newspaper on his own until 1879, when he was joined by the James brothers from Cooktown. The three entered into a partnership that continued until William Campbell's death. In about 1885, they relocated the newspaper to Barcaldine.


Political life

The death of
Francis Reid Murphy Francis Reid "Frank" Murphy (27 March 1844 - 24 January 1892) was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. He represented the seat of Barcoo from 1885 to 1892. Murphy was the eldest son of Sir Francis Murphy (1809–1891). His elde ...
created a by-election in the Queensland electoral district of Barcoo on 5 March 1892.
Thomas McIlwraith Sir Thomas McIlwraith (17 May 1835 – 17 July 1900) was for many years the dominant figure of colonial politics in Queensland. He was Premier of Queensland from 1879 to 1883, again in 1888, and for a third time in 1893. In common with most po ...
, a former
Queensland Premier The premier of Queensland is the head of government in the Australian state of Queensland. By convention the premier is the leader of the party with a parliamentary majority in the unicameral Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The premier is a ...
urged Campbell to stand for election against shearer
Tommy Ryan Tommy Ryan (born Joseph Youngs; March 31, 1870 – August 3, 1948) was an American World Welterweight and World Middleweight boxing champion who fought from 1887 to 1907. His simultaneously holding records in both weight classes was a rar ...
(not to be confused with the Queensland Premier
T. J. Ryan Thomas Joseph Ryan (1 July 1876 – 1 August 1921) was an Australian politician who served as Premier of Queensland from 1915 to 1919, as leader of the state Labor Party. He resigned to enter federal politics, sitting in the House of Represe ...
), who was the first endorsed
Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...
candidate in Queensland. Ryan won the election. Although he was not successful in state politics, Campbell took an active interest in local affairs and was a member of the
Barcaldine Divisional Board The Shire of Barcaldine was a local government area located in central Queensland and headquartered in the town of Barcaldine. It covered an area of , and existed as a local government entity from 1892 until 2008, when it amalgamated with the ...
from 1897 to 1906, as well as involving himself in many other local organisations. On 12 July 1906, Campbell was appointed for life to the
Queensland Legislative Council The Queensland Legislative Council was the upper house of the parliament in the Australian state of Queensland. It was a fully nominated body which first took office on 1 May 1860. It was abolished by the Constitution Amendment Act 1921, which to ...
. He and his family moved to live in
South Brisbane South Brisbane is an inner southern Suburbs and localities (Australia), suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , South Brisbane had a population of 7,196 people. Geography The suburb is on the southern bank of the Brisba ...
, but made regular visits to Barcaldine. In January 1917, following devastating floods, the
Queensland Government The Queensland Government is the democratic administrative authority of the Australian state of Queensland. The Government of Queensland, a parliamentary constitutional monarchy was formed in 1859 as prescribed in its Constitution, as amended f ...
asked Campbell to be part of a commission to inspect
Clermont, Queensland Clermont is a rural town and locality in the Isaac Region, Queensland, Australia. At the , the locality of Clermont had a population of 2952 people. Clermont is a major hub for the large coal mines in the region as well as serving agricultural ...
, and to advise the government on how best to assist. During the visit to Clermont, Campbell contracted
asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, co ...
(today the link between flooding and asthma is well-known). The appointment terminated on his death on 17 June 1919.


Later life

William Campbell died on 17 June 1919 at his home ''Craignish'', Barcaldine, Queensland aged 72 years 11 months. He had been ill for about two years prior to his death, suffering from
asthma Asthma is a long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wheezing, co ...
contracted in Clermont which weakened his heart. He was buried in the Barcaldine Cemetery on 18 June 1919.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Campbell, William Henry Members of the Queensland Legislative Council English emigrants to colonial Australia Jersey people Australian newspaper editors 1846 births 1919 deaths