William Bligh Henry O'Connell (26 January 1852 – 4 March 1903) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly from 1888 to 1903, representing the electorate of Musgrave. He was Secretary of Lands in the

Philp Philp is a surname, and may refer to: *Chris Philp (born 1976), British entrepreneur and Conservative Party politician * Douglas Philp (born 1967), Scottish chemist *Geoffrey Philp (born 1958), Jamaican poet, novelist and playwright *Hugh Philp (1 ...

government from 1899 until his death. O'Connell was born in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

, and was educated in England, returning to Australia at the age of eighteen. He worked for a time at Baramba Station, near

Kilkivan Kilkivan is a town and locality in the Gympie Region of Queensland, Australia. At the , Kilkivan had a population of 713. Geography The town is situated on the Wide Bay Highway, north of the state capital, Brisbane and west of Gympie. One M ...

, went to work as an aide to his uncle, Administrator of the Government

Maurice Charles O'Connell Sir Maurice Charles Philip O'Connell KCH (1768 – 25 May 1848) was a commander of forces and lieutenant-governor of colonial New South Wales. Early life Maurice Charles O'Connell was born in Ireland in 1768. He had had a distinguished career ...

, and worked for the Bank of New South Wales in

Bundaberg Bundaberg is a city in the Bundaberg Region, Queensland, Australia, and is the tenth largest city in the state. Bundaberg's regional area has a population of 70,921, and is a major centre of the Wide Bay–Burnett geographical region. The Bun ...

. He was then inspector of Pacific Islanders and assistant immigration agent for five years, before forming his own grocery, wine and spirit merchant firm at Bundaberg, O'Connell & Co. He was one of the first Bundaberg borough councillors in 1881. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly at the 1888 election as a supporter of

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 ...

, and was re-elected in 1893, 1896, 1899 and 1902. He became Secretary of Lands under Robert Philp in 1899, in which he was responsible for the passage of the ''Land Act 1902'', passed not long before his death. He died at St Helen's Private Hospital in 1903 while still in office. The funeral was held at St John's Cathedral, for which the Supreme Court adjourned as a mark of respect. He was buried at Toowong Cemetery.

References

Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly 1852 births 1903 deaths 19th-century Australian politicians {{Australia-politician-stub