Arthur Macalister, (18 January 1818 – 23 March 1883) was three times

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

Early life

Macalister was born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

, son of John Macalister, a cabinet maker, and his wife Mary, ''née'' Scoullar. Macalister was educated in Glasgow and emigrated to Australia with his wife Elizabeth Wallace ''née'' Tassie. They arrived in

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

on 28 September 1839 on the ''Abbotsford''. Macalister was appointed to the positions of clerk of Petty Sessions and postmaster at

Scone, New South Wales Scone () is a town in the Upper Hunter Shire in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. At the 2021 census, Scone had a population of 5,013 people. It is on the New England Highway north of Muswellbrook about 270 kilometres (167.77 mil ...

in June 1840. In 1846 he was working for a solicitor in Sydney. In 1850 he was admitted as a solicitor and attorney.

Political career

Macalister then settled in the

Moreton Bay Moreton Bay is a bay located on the eastern coast of Australia from central Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources. The waters of Moreton Bay are a popular destination for recreational anglers and are ...

district, then part of

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

. Macalister took part in the movement for separation, and was elected a representative for

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in Suffolk, England. It is the county town, and largest in Suffolk, followed by Lowestoft and Bury St Edmunds, and the third-largest population centre in East Anglia, ...

in the New South Wales parliament on 14 June 1859. In 1859, the colony of Queensland was separated from New South Wales and Macalister was elected to the first parliament as member for his old district and was made chairman of committees. In March 1862 he joined the Herbert ministry as Secretary for Public Lands and Works, and when Herbert resigned on 1 February 1866, became Premier. Macalister's ministry only lasted until 20 July 1866, when he resigned owing to the Governor, Sir George Bowen, refusing to sanction a proposed issue of "inconvertible government notes". Bowen called on Herbert to form a new ministry which immediately carried an act authorizing the issue of exchequer bills. This carried the colony through a financial crisis caused by the failure of the

Agra and Masterman's Bank Agra ( ) is a city on the banks of the Yamuna river in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh, about south-east of the national capital Delhi and 330 km west of the state capital Lucknow. With a population of roughly 1.6 million, Agra is the ...

, which had arranged a loan for railway extensions. Herbert had to leave for England almost at once, a reconstruction of the ministry was made, and Macalister again became Premier on 7 August 1866. He resigned a year later and was again elected Chairman of Committees. When

Charles Lilley Sir Charles Lilley (27 August 1827 – 20 August 1897) was a Premier of Queensland, Premier and Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Queensland. He had a significant influence on the form and spirit of state education in colonial Queensland whi ...

became Premier in November 1868, Macalister took office as Secretary for Public Lands and Works, and for the goldfields. This ministry resigned in May 1870 and, in November, Macalister was elected Speaker. Macalister lost his seat after a hectic campaign in June 1871 but was re-elected for Ipswich in 1872 in a by-election. Macalister formed his third ministry in January 1874 and resigned in June 1876 to become

Agent-General An Agent-General ( or , masculine and feminine respectively) is the representative in cities abroad of the government of a Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province or an States and territories of Australia, Australian state and, h ...

for Queensland in London.

Later life

Macalister's health was failing in 1881 and he resigned his office as Agent-General; he was granted a pension of £500 a year by the Queensland parliament. He was created

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George I ...

in 1876. Macalister died near Glasgow on 23 March 1883 at the age of 65. He was survived by his wife, who died 14 September 1894.

Family

Macalister married Elizabeth Wallace Tassie in Edinburgh, Scotland with whom he had 9 children.

Legacy

A number of street names in the

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

suburb of Carina Heights are identical to the surnames of former Members of the

Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly h ...

. One of these is Macalister Street. The electoral district of Macalister created in the 2017 Queensland state electoral redistribution was named after him. The Macalister Range along the Far North Queensland coast between

Cairns Cairns (; ) is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the , Cairns had a population of 153,181 people. The city was founded in 1876 and named after William Cairns, Sir W ...

and Port Douglas was named in honour of the Premier by George Augustus Frederick Elphinstone Dalrymple during the 1873 ‘Queensland North-East Coast Expedition. The range name is also used for a locality in Far North Queensland and Macalister Range National Park. The township of Macalister on the Western Darling Downs was named after him.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Macalister, Arthur 1818 births 1883 deaths Premiers of Queensland Australian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly Scottish emigrants to colonial Australia Lawyers from Glasgow Speakers of the Queensland Legislative Assembly 19th-century Australian politicians Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly