Edward Nowell Twopeny (24 October 1854 – 17 February 1932) was an Australian politician who represented 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 ...

multi-member An electoral or voting system is a set of rules used to determine the results of an election. Electoral systems are used in politics to elect governments, while non-political elections may take place in business, nonprofit organizations and inf ...

seat of

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from 1917 to 1918, representing the Liberal Union. Twopeny was born at

Little Casterton Little Casterton is a small village and civil parish in Rutland, England. The population of the civil parish at the 2001 census was 148, increasing to 218 at the 2011 census. It is about two miles (3 km) north of Stamford on a minor road t ...

in England, the son of Nowell Twopeny, Archdeacon of Flinders. His family migrated to

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a States and territories of Australia, 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 in ...

when he was six, and he was educated at St. Peter's College in

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

. At seventeen, he went to work on Coonatta Station, where he later became manager. In 1903, Twopeny purchased a property near

Quorn Quorn is a brand of meat substitute products. Quorn originated in the UK and is sold primarily in Europe, but is available in 11 countries. The brand is owned by parent company Monde Nissin. Quorn is sold as both a cooking ingredient and as ...

. He was chairman of the District Council of Hammond for fifteen years, a

District Council of Kanyaka The District Council of Kanyaka was a local government area in South Australia that existed from 1888 to 1969. History The council was established on 5 January 1888 under the provisions of the ''District Councils Act 1887''. On creation, the cou ...

councillor for over twenty years, and its chairman at the time of his death. He was a life member of the Quorn Jockey Club, chairman of the Quorn Agricultural Society, and a member of the Quorn High School and Quorn Institute committees. He was the first district secretary of the

Farmers and Producers Political Union The Farmers and Producers Political Union (FPPU) was an independent conservative agrarian political party founded in South Australia in reaction to Labor, keen to fend off a perceived threat to the FPPU's interests against a rising labour moveme ...

upon its foundation, and when that merged into the Liberal Union in 1910, he became its first district secretary for

, also serving as president and secretary of its Quorn branch. He was elected to the House of Assembly at a 1917 by-election but was defeated at the 1918 state election. He had previously unsuccessfully contested the

1910 Events January * January 6 – Abé people in the French West Africa colony of Côte d'Ivoire rise against the colonial administration; the rebellion is brutally suppressed by the military. * January 8 – By the Treaty of Punakha, t ...

and 1912 election, and was again unsuccessful at the 1921 election. Twopeny died at Quorn in 1932 after twelve months of indifferent health and was buried at Quorn Cemetery. He had married in 1880, and had eight children. Two sons fought in World War I; one was killed, while the other was awarded the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level until 1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) Other ranks (UK), other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth of ...

. Upon his death, the ''Quorn Mercury'' described Twopeny as the "Father of the District". His brother,

Richard Twopeny Richard Ernest Nowell Twopeny (1 August 1857 – 2 September 1915) was an Australian rules footballer, frequently spelled Twopenny or Tuppenny; also journalist and newspaper editor/owner in New Zealand and Australia, in which context he was in ...

, was a notable journalist, newspaper editor and newspaper owner in Australia and New Zealand.

References

* 1932 deaths Members of the South Australian House of Assembly 1854 births People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide People from Little Casterton Colony of South Australia people {{Australia-politician-stub