Richard Deodatus Poulett-Harris (26 October 1817 – 23 December 1899) was an

educationalist Education sciences, also known as education studies or education theory, and traditionally called ''pedagogy'', seek to describe, understand, and prescribe education including education policy. Subfields include comparative education, educationa ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

Early life and education

Harris was born on

Cape Breton Island Cape Breton Island (, formerly '; or '; ) is a rugged and irregularly shaped island on the Atlantic coast of North America and part of the province of Nova Scotia, Canada. The island accounts for 18.7% of Nova Scotia's total area. Although ...

Nova Scotia Nova Scotia is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, located on its east coast. It is one of the three Maritime Canada, Maritime provinces and Population of Canada by province and territory, most populous province in Atlan ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

, the eldest son of Captain Charles Poulett Harris of the 60th Rifles Regiment, who was stationed there. His mother was Anna Maria, daughter of Richard Stout, judge and member of the governor's council on Cape Breton Island. Harris was descended from Sir Amias Poulett,

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

ambassador to

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in the reign of

Queen Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. She was the last and longest reigning monarch of the House of Tudor. Her eventful reign, and its effect on history ...

and afterwards keeper of

Mary, Queen of Scots Mary, Queen of Scots (8 December 1542 – 8 February 1587), also known as Mary Stuart or Mary I of Scotland, was List of Scottish monarchs, Queen of Scotland from 14 December 1542 until her forced abdication in 1567. The only surviving legit ...

. Harris was educated from 1837 at the Manchester Free Grammar School and from 1839

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a Colleges of the University of Cambridge, constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any ...

where he graduated

B.A. A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree ...

with honours in 1843, and

M.A. A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

in 1852.

Career

He was ordained

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Cathol ...

in 1847 and

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

in 1849 in the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the State religion#State churches, established List of Christian denominations, Christian church in England and the Crown Dependencies. It is the mother church of the Anglicanism, Anglican Christian tradition, ...

. He engaged in teaching and became second master at

Sheffield Collegiate School Sheffield Collegiate School began in 1836 in new buildings on the corner of Ecclesall Road and Collegiate Crescent (now Grade II listed and part of Sheffield Hallam University). The school enjoyed academic success but lacked sound finances an ...

in 1843, a master at Huddersfield College in 1844, and five years later was appointed classics master at Blackheath Proprietary School. In 1844 he married Catherine Prior Hall, with whom he had six children, including Georgiana Poulett Harris (Mrs. Ingle, 1845–1919), first headmistress of

Christchurch Girls' High School Christchurch Girls' High School () in Christchurch, New Zealand, was established in 1877 and is the second oldest girls-only secondary school in the country, after Otago Girls' High School. History Christchurch Girls' High School was establishe ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

Tasmania

After his wife's death in June 1856, Harris went to Tasmania to become headmaster of the Hobart high school, and filled the position with much ability, inspiring both respect and affection from his pupils. In 1858 he married Elizabeth Eleanor Milward, with whom he had another six children. It was at Harris' suggestion that an act was passed in 1858 founding a system of school examinations based on the Oxford and Cambridge local examinations, and also founding the Tasmanian scholarships of £200 a year tenable at English universities. He was one of the original members of the council of education founded in 1859, and long advocated the establishment of the

University of Tasmania The University of Tasmania (UTAS) is a public research university, primarily located in Tasmania, Australia. Founded in 1890, it is Australia's fourth oldest university. Christ College (University of Tasmania), Christ College, one of the unive ...

. He resigned from his headmastership in 1885 and lived in retirement near

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

. When the university was founded in 1890 Harris was elected the first warden of the senate. He was also the first Grand Master of the Masonic Lodge in Tasmania.

Death and family

He died at

Woodbridge, Tasmania Woodbridge is a semi-rural locality in the local government area (LGA) of Kingborough in the Hobart LGA region of Tasmania. The locality is about south of the town of Kingston. The 2021 Census recorded a population of 547 for the state subu ...

, on 23 December 1899, and was survived by his wife, and of his first marriage: Georgiana; Katharine (1847–1940); Charlotte Maria (1850–1941); Annie Louisa (1853–1922), and Lovell Andrews (1856–1929); and of his second marriage: Eleanor Mary (1865–1931), Henry Vere (1866–1933), Anna May (1869–1953), and Louisa Violet (1873–1941). Louisa's younger twin, Harriet Lily, died from Tubercular

Peritonitis Peritonitis is inflammation of the localized or generalized peritoneum, the lining of the inner wall of the abdomen and covering of the abdominal organs. Symptoms may include severe pain, swelling of the abdomen, fever, or weight loss. One pa ...

in 1897, aged 23, having been a teacher at the Ladies' Grammar School and Kindergarten in Davey Street,

that was run by her sisters. Richard and his daughters Eleanor and Lily are buried in the same grave at

Cornelian Bay Cemetery Cornelian Bay Cemetery is a cemetery in Cornelian Bay, Tasmania, Australia. It is the oldest cemetery in Tasmania that remains in use. History The cemetery location, a section of the former Government Farm site, was selected in the late 1860s, ...

References

*E. L. French,
Harris, Richard Deodatus Poulett (1817–1899)
,

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

, Volume 4, MUP, 1972, pp 352–353. Retrieved 20 January 2009 * * Rector and Grand Master: Being a Memoir of the Late Rev. Richard Deodatus Poulett-Harris Rector of The High School, Hobart and the First Grand Master of the Tasmanian Masons (Launceston, 1903) {{DEFAULTSORT:Poulett-Harris, Richard Deodatus 1817 births 1899 deaths English Anglicans Schoolteachers from Greater Manchester English emigrants to colonial Australia Freemasons of the United Grand Lodge of England People from Cape Breton Island Masonic grand masters Australian schoolteachers Burials in Tasmania

Early life and education

Career

Tasmania

Death and family

See also

References