Arthur Hardy (1817 – 13 July 1909), British born Australian pastoralist, barrister, quarry-owner, businessman and politician, was a successful

South Australian South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories by area, which includes some of the most arid parts ...

colonial settler who is also known for a number of other achievements, including building the mansions Birksgate and Mount Lofty House, and establishing (and funding) the Glen Osmond Institute.Tregenza, John M
'Hardy, Arthur (1817–1909)'
''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 4, (MUP), 1972

History

Hardy was born in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ) is an area of Northern England which was History of Yorkshire, historically a county. Despite no longer being used for administration, Yorkshire retains a strong regional identity. The county was named after its county town, the ...

and trained as a lawyer. On his doctor's advice to seek a warmer climate, he migrated to South Australia on the ''Platina'', arriving in February 1839, his brother Alfred Hardy (1813–1870) having migrated there in September 1836 on the ''Cygnet'' as one of

William Light William Light (27 April 1786 – 6 October 1839) was a British military officer and colonial administrator. He was the first Surveyor General of South Australia, Surveyor-General of the History of South Australia#British preparation for est ...

's surveyors, appointed Town Surveyor in 1839 then sacked in 1842 during Governor Grey's cutbacks. Hardy bought some sheep which he pastured at his property "Shepley" (now the suburb of

Paradise In religion and folklore, paradise is a place of everlasting happiness, delight, and bliss. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical, eschatological, or both, often contrasted with the miseries of human ...

). He also practised law with dealings in the

Supreme Court In most legal jurisdictions, a supreme court, also known as a court of last resort, apex court, high (or final) court of appeal, and court of final appeal, is the highest court within the hierarchy of courts. Broadly speaking, the decisions of ...

, and was later appointed as

Crown Prosecutor Crown prosecutor is the title given in a number of jurisdictions to the state prosecutor, the legal party responsible for presenting the case against an individual in a criminal trial. The title is commonly used in Commonwealth realms. Examples * ...

. In 1848 he returned to England to marry, and returned on the ''Mary Ann'' in June 1850, and commissioned the building of "Birksgate" on land he had purchased from E. C. Frome sometime around 1845. In the 1850s he purchased around on

Mount Lofty Mount Lofty (, elevation AHD) is the highest point in the southern Mount Lofty Ranges. It is located about east of the Adelaide city centre, within the Cleland National Park in the Adelaide Hills area of South Australia. The mountain's su ...

, where in 1856 he built a summer retreat, "Mount Lofty House". This in 1863 became his only residence, and in 1864 he sold "Birksgate" to

Thomas Elder Sir Thomas Elder (5 August 1818 – 6 March 1897) was a Scottish-Australian Pastoral farming, pastoralist, highly successful businessman, philanthropist, politician, race-horse owner and breeder, and public figure. Amongst many other things, h ...

. He was fond of entertaining and a standard of gracious living which he could not support, and after some reverses was obliged to sell Mount Lofty House and take his second son Herbert out of St. Peter's College (elder son Arthur Marmaduke had been to

Marlborough College Marlborough College is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English private boarding school) for pupils aged 13 to 18 in Marlborough, Wiltshire, England. It was founded as Marlborough School in 1843 by the Dean of Manchester, George ...

, London). Hardy represented

Albert Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert Computers, Inc., a computer manufacturer in the 1980s * Albert Czech Republic, a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street mar ...

in the

South Australian House of Assembly The House of Assembly (also known as the lower house) is one of two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia, the other being the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assem ...

from 22 February 1875 to 8 February 1886 and 9 May 1886 to 5 April 1887. He continued practising law well into his 90th year, the oldest member of the South Australian Supreme Court, and was still attending the office every morning.

Family

Arthur Hardy (1817–1909) married Martha Price (c. 1821 – 18 June 1904) in England on 30 August 1849. Their children were: *Arthur Marmaduke Hardy (11 October 1851 – 13 August 1934) married Catherine Louise Hallett ( – ) on 16 April 1878. He was a solicitor in Port Augusta. :*Mary Wentworth Hardy (7 February 1879 – 1962) *Mabel Hardy (20 July 1853 – 15 July 1924), lived at Glenelg *Herbert Mansell Hardy (1856 – 1927) married Miriam Isabella Cunningham (1855 – 11 March 1950) on 15 August 1889 :* Mabel Phyllis Hardy (11 April 1890 – 1977) Mabel and Frederick were twins, born prematurely. Mabel was a highly regarded teacher, co-founder of Stawell School. :*Frederick Mansell Hardy (11 April 1890 – 1965) married Vida Marie Nadebaum (1894 – 1971) :*Kate Isabella (Isobel?) Hardy (28 March 1892 – 1986) :*Margaret De Guerin Hardy (3 May 1904 – 1997) *Ethel Hardy (1858 – 18 June 1945) married Caulfield Barton ( – 1937) on 23 April 1884

References

External links

Mount Lofty House History
www.mtloftyhouse.com.au
Arthur Hardy of Mt Lofty Housesummary
www.sahistorians.org.au.
Also mentions: 'Birksgate' Glen Osmond, 'Hartleybank' later 'Claremont' Glen Osmond, Shepley now Paradise. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hardy, Arthur 1817 births 1909 deaths Businesspeople from Adelaide Members of the South Australian House of Assembly 19th-century Australian politicians