John Lewis (12 February 1844 – 25 August 1923) was an Australian pastoralist and politician. He was a member of the

South Australian Legislative Council The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the South Australian House of Assembly, H ...

from 1898 to 1923, representing the Northern District (1898-1902) and North-Eastern District (1902-1923). He was the father of

Essington Lewis Essington Lewis (13 January 18812 October 1961) was an Australian industrialist. He was the Director-General of the Department of Munitions during World War II. Biography Early life Essington Lewis was born in Burra, South Australia on 13 Ja ...

Biography

John Lewis was born on 12 February 1844 in

Brighton, South Australia Brighton is a coastal suburb of Adelaide, South Australia, situated between Seacliff, South Australia, Seacliff and Glenelg, South Australia, Glenelg and aside Holdfast Bay. Some notable features of the area are the Brighton-Seacliff Yacht Clu ...

, the son of James Lewis, who had been a member of the original party, under

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 ...

, which surveyed the City of Adelaide, and had accompanied

Charles Sturt Charles Napier Sturt (28 April 1795 – 16 June 1869) was a British officer and explorer of Australia, and part of the European land exploration of Australia, European exploration of Australia. He led several expeditions into the interior of the ...

on his 1844 expedition down the Murray. He left school at the age of twelve to work on his father's farm in

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California, a city in the United States * Richmond, London, a town in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, England * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town ...

, leaving him two years later to work as a sheep drover and in other occupations.Walsh, Kay & Wooton, Joy W. ''Australian Autobiographical Narratives: Vol 2; 1850-1900'' National Library of Australia, 1998 From 1867 to 1885, he was employed as Liston, Shakes and Co.'s agent in Burra. In 1871, he made a trip to the Northern Territory with his brother James to secure a property on behalf of George McLachlan. He set down details of this trip in his autobiography ''Fought and Won''. He returned to Adelaide in 1876, when he married and settled in Burra. He joined William Liston (ca.1840–1901) and James Shakes in their stock and station agency, and acted as their agent in Burra from 1876 to 1885 when Liston resigned and the company operated as Lewis & Shakes until 1888 when they joined with George W. Bagot as Bagot, Shakes & Lewis. The company absorbed Luxmoore, Dowling & Jeffrey in May 1906. About the same time Lewis left Burra for Adelaide, moving into the imposing residence ' Benacre' in

Glen Osmond Glen Osmond is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Burnside which is in the foothills of the Adelaide Hills. It is well known for the road intersection on the western side of the suburb, where the South Eastern Freeway (National ...

, built for William Bickford. He acquired various pastoral properties in South Australia: Dalhousie Springs, Witchelina, Mount Nor'-West, Ediacara, Nappa Merrie, Coronga Peak, and

Newcastle Waters Newcastle Waters is a town and locality off the Stuart Highway in the Northern Territory. It is classified as a ghost town that contains a number of preserved historic buildings, including Jones's Store and the Junction Hotel. Geography no ...

, many in conjunction with Sir Thomas Elder. Bagot, Shakes & Lewis was absorbed by

Goldsbrough Mort & Co Goldsbrough Mort & Co was an Australian agricultural business. History In 1843 Thomas Sutcliffe Mort established a business which operated as auctioneers and brokers in the wool trade. The business took on partners and become known as Mort & C ...

. in 1924.

Politics

In 1897 he stood as candidate for the North-Eastern district in the

Legislative Council A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...

and was successful; in 1902 he was a successful candidate for the Northern seat, and held it until 1923.

Other interests

Lewis was a member of the Royal Geographical Society of South Australia and for seven years its president. He was vice-president of the Royal Society of St. George, an active member of the Pastoralists' Association, the

Aborigines' Friends' Association The Aborigines' Friends' Association (AFA) was established out of concern for "the moral, spiritual and physical well-being" of Australian Aboriginal people from the Northern Territory and particularly South Australia. This organisation operated ...

, the Horticultural and Floricultural Society, the South Australian Soldiers Fund, and the

Adelaide Children's Hospital The Women's and Children's Hospital (WCH) is a hospital dedicated to the care of women and children in Adelaide, South Australia. It was established in March 1989, when the Queen Victoria Hospital and Adelaide Children's Hospital were amalgamate ...

Family

Lewis married Martha Anne Brook (c. 1847 – 3 July 1894) on 18 September 1876. He married again on 5 July 1907 to widow Florence Margaret Toll ( – 23 February 1941), the youngest daughter of

William Ranson Mortlock William Ranson Mortlock (1821 – 10 May 1884) was a grazier and politician in colonial South Australia.H. Kempe'Mortlock, William Ranson (1821 - 1884)' Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 5, Melbourne University Press, 1974, pp 301-302. ...

Recognition

Lewis was awarded 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 III ...

(CMG) in January 1923.

Death and legacy

Lewis died on 25 August 1923 in the Adelaide suburb of

. The John Lewis Medal ("for Exploration" / "for Geographical Research" / for "Literary Work in Geography") was established in 1947 by the Royal Geographical Society of South Australia and continues to be awarded . Gold Medallists receive a medal, a certificate, and a citation. It is also known as the Lewis Gold Medal. The John Lewis Silver Medal is awarded to a higher-degree student at a South Australian university "who has made a significant theoretical or empirical contribution to geography".

Bibliography

*Lewis, John (1844–1923) ''Fought and Won'' first published in Adelaide by W.K. Thomas & Co., 1922. :(facsimile edition) Adelaide; Printed by Gillingham Printers, 1985.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lewis, John 1844 births 1923 deaths Members of the South Australian Legislative Council Australian stock and station agents Companions_of_the_Order_of_St_Michael_and_St_George