William Silas Pearse (21 May 1838 – 30 December 1908) was an Australian businessman, pastoralist, and politician who served in both houses of the

Parliament of Western Australia The Parliament of Western Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Western Australia, forming the legislative branch of the Government of Western Australia. The parliament consists of a lower house, the Legislative Ass ...

. He was a member of the Legislative Council from 1872 to 1880 and again from 1884 to 1890, and then a member of the Legislative Assembly from 1890 to 1895.

Early life

Pearse was born in

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

to Susannah (née Glyde) and William Silas Pearse Sr., his parents both being early arrivals to the

Swan River Colony The Swan River Colony, also known as the Swan River Settlement, or just Swan River, was a British colony established in 1829 on the Swan River, in Western Australia. This initial settlement place on the Swan River was soon named Perth, and it ...

. After being educated privately, he went into partnership with his brother (George Pearse), opening a butchery and

tannery Tanning may refer to: *Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather *Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin **Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun **Sunless tanning, application of a stain or dye t ...

in Fremantle. They later diversified the business into ship-owning and importing. In 1866, Pearse was elected to the

Fremantle Town Trust The City of Fremantle is a local government area in the south of Perth, Western Australia. The City covers an area of , and lies about southwest of the Perth central business district. History The City of Fremantle is named after Charles Frem ...

. He was re-elected in 1868, and appointed chairman. When the trust was converted into a town council in 1871, Pearse was elected Fremantle's first mayor, serving in the position until 1872 (and as a councillor until 1874).William Silas Pearse
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 8 June 2016.

Politics

In 1872, Pearse was elected to the Legislative Council as one of two members for the seat of Fremantle, alongside

William Marmion William Edward Marmion (22 October 1845 – 4 July 1896) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Western Australian Legislative Council from 1870 to 1890, and a member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly from 1890 to 18 ...

. He and his brother mounted an expedition into the Murchison region in 1874, subsequently establishing

Meka Station Meka Station, commonly referred to as Meka, is a pastoral lease that operates as a sheep station in Western Australia. It is situated about north of Yalgoo and west of Cue in the Murchison area of the Mid-West region. The ephemeral Sand ...

. Pearse resigned from the Legislative Council in 1880 to concentrate on his pastoral interests, and the following year purchased shares in three leases in the Kimberley – Meda Station, Oobagooma Station, and Liveringa Station. He re-entered the Legislative Council in 1884, and remained a member until the advent of

responsible government Responsible government is a conception of a system of government that embodies the principle of parliamentary accountability, the foundation of the Westminster system of parliamentary democracy. Governments (the equivalent of the executive bran ...

in 1890. At the 1890 general election, the first to be held for the Legislative Assembly, Pearse was elected to the seat of North Fremantle. He was re-elected at the 1894 election, but resigned from parliament in April 1895 in order to take an extended trip to Europe with his family.

Later life

Pearse eventually retired to England, settling in

Clifton, Bristol Clifton is both a suburb of Bristol, England, and the name of one of the city's thirty-five council wards. The Clifton ward also includes the areas of Cliftonwood and Hotwells. The eastern part of the suburb lies within the ward of Clifton Do ...

. He died there in December 1908, aged 70."MR. W. S. PEARSE."
'' The Western Mail'', 9 January 1909. Pearse had married twice, firstly in 1862 to Johannah Hawkes, with whom he had one daughter. He was widowed in 1892, and remarried the following year to Alice Higham (née Glyde), who was the widow of

Edward Higham Edward Henry Higham (26 July 1846 – 20 April 1885) was a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council from 1880 to 1884. Life The son of a baker, Edward Higham was born in Brackley, Northamptonshire, England (one source says Oxfordshi ...

. Pearse's son-in-law,

George Hubble George Yorke Hubble (28 November 1858 – 22 March 1906) was an Australian politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1897 to 1901 (excluding a brief gap in 1899), representing the seat of Gascoyne. Hub ...

, was also a member of parliament.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearse, William Silas 1838 births 1908 deaths Australian emigrants to England Australian pastoralists Mayors of Fremantle Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council People from Fremantle 19th-century Australian politicians 19th-century Australian businesspeople Western Australian local councillors

Early life

Politics

Later life

See also

References