Gabriel Bennett (23 December 1817 – 13 September 1895) was an

auctioneer An auction is usually a process of buying and selling goods or services by offering them up for bids, taking bids, and then selling the item to the highest bidder or buying the item from the lowest bidder. Some exceptions to this definition ...

, stock and cattle salesman and

horse breeder Horse breeding is reproduction in horses, and particularly the human-directed process of selective breeding of animals, particularly purebred horses of a given breed. Planned matings can be used to produce specifically desired characteristics in ...

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 ...

. He founded the stock and station agents Bennett and Fisher.

History

Bennett was born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, a son of Solomon Bennett (c. 1795 – 11 January 1864) of 5 Slaverton Row,

Walworth Road The A215 is an A roads in Great Britain, A road in south London, starting at Elephant and Castle and finishing around Shirley, London, Shirley. It runs through the London Boroughs of London Borough of Lambeth, Lambeth, London Borough of Southw ...

, London. and married in 1846. In 1853 he emigrated to

Melbourne Melbourne ( , ; Boonwurrung language, Boonwurrung/ or ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city of the States and territories of Australia, Australian state of Victori ...

, and the following year arrived 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 ...

and opened a

butcher's shop ''Butcher's Shop'' is the title of two paintings by the Italian Baroque painter Annibale Carracci, both dating from the early 1580s. They are now in the collections of Christ Church Picture Gallery, Oxford, and the Kimbell Art Museum in Fort Wor ...

Currie Street Currie Street is a main street in the Adelaide city centre, South Australia.Map
of the

Hindley Street Hindley Street is located in the north-west quarter of the Adelaide city centre, centre of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It runs between King William Street, Adelaide, King William Street and West Terrace, Adelaide, West Terrace. Th ...

, then in 1863 moved into the wholesale meat trade.

John Lazar John LaZar (born May 22, 1946) is an American actor of both stage and screen, best remembered for his lead role as Ronnie 'Z-man' Barzell in the Russ Meyer film ''Beyond the Valley of the Dolls'' (1970), co-written by Meyer and Roger Ebert. La ...

was an employee. In 1865, he joined E. M. Bagot, a fellow-member of the

South Australian Jockey Club South Australian Jockey Club is the principal race club in South Australia. First racing events The first horse racing events in South Australia took place at a well-attended picnic meeting held over 1 and 2 January 1838. In August 1838, riding ...

committee, as partners in Bennett & Bagot, station and livestock agents, with offices in Clarke's buildings, Hindley Street, and afterwards in Gresham Street. That partnership was dissolved in October 1876, Bagot having to declare himself insolvent, and Bennett carried on business with his son Henry Bennett. This partnership, despite the business being quite profitable, ended in insolvency, due largely to

embezzlement Embezzlement (from Anglo-Norman, from Old French ''besillier'' ("to torment, etc."), of unknown origin) is a type of financial crime, usually involving theft of money from a business or employer. It often involves a trusted individual taking ...

on the part of his sons Henry and (to a lesser extent) Simeon, who was employed as a clerk. Bennett continued in the same line of business alone, trading as "G. Bennett' & Co.", and made significant reparations to creditors; the sons departed for Queensland, where South Australian law did not apply. In 1889 Bennett was joined by Benjamin Fisher, founding the firm of Bennett and Fisher which prospered from the outset, and became one of Australia's foremost stock and station agents.

Horse racing

Bennett was at the forefront of thoroughbred racing in South Australia. At a private meeting held on 2 June 1861, a steering committee was formed consisting of Sir J. H. Fisher, W. H. Formby, W. Filgate, C. B. Fisher, and James Chambers, determined to re-form the old

and draw up rules. At a second meeting held on 1 July 1861, a committee consisting of E. M. Bagot (chairman), W. K. Simms, P. B. Coglin (starter), and Gabriel Bennett was elected to establish facilities and organise the first racing program. They settled on the Thebarton track as their racecourse, and the first programme was held 1–3 January 1862. Bennett had his "Butcher Boy" and "Miss Rowe" in several races, but without success. At the summer meeting 1863, with "Lord of the Isles", ridden by Billy Simpson, he was more fortunate. He succeeded P. B. Coglin as official starter in 1863, holding that position until the Club folded in 1869. Horses for which he was, later, better known were Emulation, Impudence, Loquacity, Ada, Vibration, and Presumption, and was involved with William Gerrard of Yoho estate, near Delamere, in the breeding of thoroughbreds. 1876 was a good year for him; his horses taking the St Leger at

Morphettville Morphettville is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Marion. The northern part of the suburb is bounded by the Glenelg tram line, and fully occupied by the Morphettville Racecourse (horseracing track). The tram barn storage an ...

, the Geelong Gold Cup, and the Geelong Handicap with Emulation. In the same year he won the

Adelaide Cup The Adelaide Cup is a South Australian Jockey Club Group 2 Thoroughbred handicap horse race for three-year-olds and older, run over 3,200 metres at Morphettville Racecourse in Adelaide, Australia on the second Monday in March. Total prize mone ...

and the Queen's Guineas with Impudence. He was, for a man in his position, a very moderate gambler; seldom laying more than £10 in the course of a meeting. He never attended a

Melbourne Cup The Melbourne Cup is an annual Group 1 Thoroughbred horse race held in Melbourne, Australia, at the Flemington Racecourse. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and older, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club that forms part of the ...

or an Easter meeting of the Oakbank Racing Club. Bennett was also involved in the formation of the

Adelaide Racing Club Adelaide Racing Club was a horse racing club which had its origins around 1870 but founded in 1879 in competition with the South Australian Jockey Club. The A.R.C. held their race meetings on the "Old Adelaide Racecourse" (later known as Victoria ...

, which had its origin in races held at the "Old Adelaide Racecourse" (now Victoria Park) on New Year's Day 1870 and 1878, and was formalised in 1879. He was one of the four who that year, on behalf of the Club, took out a 21-year lease on "The Old Racecourse", the others being William Blackler,

Seth Ferry Seth "The Master" Ferry (25 May 1839 – 20 October 1932) was a prominent rider, dealer, owner and trainer of racehorses in South Australia. Biography Seth Ferry was born at "Providence House", Ponders End, Lower Edmonton, Middlesex, where his p ...

and Dr

Robert Peel Sir Robert Peel, 2nd Baronet (5 February 1788 – 2 July 1850), was a British Conservative statesman who twice was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834–1835, 1841–1846), and simultaneously was Chancellor of the Exchequer (1834–183 ...

; soon whittled down to just two: Blackler and Ferry. Bennett served as steward and starter, as which he also officiated at some country clubs, though he was barred 1881–1883 while serving out his time as an undischarged bankrupt. He also often acted as a Judge at Agricultural Society Shows and other events.

Other interests

Bennett was a commissioned officer in the Reedbeds Cavalry in the South Australian Volunteer Force. Bennett was a respected member of the Jewish community, and held several offices with the Adelaide Synagogue. He was president of the congregation when the new Rabbi, Rev. A. T. Boas arrived in South Australia on 13 February 1870, and in the following July laid the foundation stone of the new synagogue. Gabriel Bennett was not connected with the firm of Bennett & Barton (Stephen Bennett and Charles H. Barton), land, loan and commission agents of

Kapunda Kapunda is a town on the Light River near the Barossa Valley in South Australia. It was established after a discovery in 1842 of significant copper deposits. The population was 2,917 at the 2016 Australian census. The southern entrance to th ...

and Adelaide.

Family

Gabriel Bennett (23 December 1817 – 6 September 1895) married Rosetta "Rose" Aaron (c. 1818 – 16 July 1893) in England on 8 July 1846. They had a home in Gover Street, North Adelaide. Their children were *Henry Bennett (c. 1848 – ) married Rebecca Friedman (28 March 1850 – 30 July 1923) in Melbourne on 29 November 1876. Their only son drowned crossing Ferrers Creek, Queensland on 7 March 1913. *(Rebecca) Kate Bennett (c. 1850 – 9 October 1886) married Jacob M. Asher (c. 1849 – 3 January 1922) of Port Augusta on 15 August 1882. He was later cordial manufacturer of Kalgoorlie, then Fremantle, Western Australia. *Elisabeth Bennett (c. 1852 – 24 July 1904) *Fanny Bennett (1857 – 7 June 1927) married widower Moss Judah Solomon (1843–1933), son of

Judah Moss Solomon Judah Moss Solomon (21 December 1818 – 29 August 1880)Richards, Eric'Solomon, Judah Moss (1818 - 1880)' Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 6, Melbourne University Press, 1976, pp 163-164. was a successful businessman, Mayor of Adelai ...

, in 1895. She was in 1902 founder of the Jewish Ladies Guild. *Simeon Bennett (1858 – ), also known as A. S. Bennett, married Reyna Lawrence (1854 – 30 December 1927) on 26 November 1879. Among their children was G. S. Bennett, later a professor at "Bethaney College, USA" (most likely Bethany College) *Miriam "Minnie" Bennett (1859 – 28 November 1935) married John Daniels (1860 – 20 November 1926) on 26 July 1888. They had a home "Elsmore" on 74 Buxton Street, North Adelaide. He was a son of John Daniels (c. 1817 – 17 October 1887) and Rosetta Solomon (1829 – 23 April 1881), who married in 1854, and was prominent in the voluntary militia. Rosetta was a member of Adelaide's Solomon family. He was not related to Dr. Alfred Henry Bennett (c. 1867–1930), the noted racehorse owner, member of the

and

Tattersalls Tattersalls (formerly Tattersall's) is the main auctioneer of race horses in the United Kingdom and Ireland. Founding It was founded in 1766 by Richard Tattersall (1724–1795), who had been stud groom to the second Duke of Kingston. ...

Clubs, and from 1913 the

committee. The funeral took place at the Jewish section of the

West Terrace Cemetery The West Terrace Cemetery, formerly Adelaide Public Cemetery is a cemetery in Adelaide, South Australia. It is the state's oldest cemetery, first appearing on Colonel William Light's 1837 plan of the Adelaide city centre, to the south-west of ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bennett, Gabriel Jewish Australian sportspeople Australian racehorse owners and breeders Australian auctioneers 1817 births 1895 deaths Australian stock and station agents 19th-century Australian businesspeople British emigrants to the Colony of Victoria Businesspeople from London Businesspeople from Adelaide 19th-century Australian sportsmen Colony of South Australia people Sportspeople from South Australia