Richard Sumner (January 1859 – 11 June 1927) was a member of both the

Queensland Legislative Council Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, ...

and

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Early life

Sumner was born in January 1859 at

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, to Joseph Sumner and his wife Ann (née Moore) and educated at the Mechanics' Institute. Arriving in

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 ...

in 1883 at age 24, he took up Pineapple farming at Zillmere in the 1880s before establishing a fruit preserving factory in

Fortitude Valley Fortitude Valley (often called "The Valley" by local residents) is an inner suburb of the City of Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. In the , Fortitude Valley had a population of 9,708 people. The suburb features two pedestri ...

. Sumner was President of the Queensland Central Executive for the Labor Party, Controller of the Trade Boards and a Commissioner on the Commonwealth Price Fixing Board. He was also a director and guarantor for the ''Daily Standard''.

Political career

Before joining the Labour Party, Sumner was a supporter of the Kidston–

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ministry and later the Opposition group. At the 1907 state election, he was a candidate for the seat of

Nundah Nundah (previously called German Station) is an inner suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It contains the neighbourhood of Toombul. In the , Nundah had a population of 13,098 people. Prior to European settlement, Nundah was ...

and defeated Mt Atthow by 152 votes. He held the seat until the

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when the former member, Thomas Bridges, defeated Sumner by 178 votes. When the Labour Party starting forming governments in Queensland, it found much of its legislation being blocked by a hostile

, where members had been appointed for life by successive conservative governments. After a failed

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in May 1917, Premier Ryan tried a new tactic, and later that year advised the Governor, Sir Hamilton John Goold-Adams, to appoint thirteen new members whose allegiance lay with Labour to the council."Goold-Adams, Sir Hamilton John (1858–1920)"
''

Australian Dictionary of Biography The ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'' (ADB or AuDB) is a national co-operative enterprise founded and maintained by the Australian National University (ANU) to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's ...

''. Retrieved 15 April 2015. Sumner was one of the thirteen new members, and went on to serve for four and a half years until the council was abolished in March, 1922.

Personal life

On 6 April 1886, Smith married Eliza Jane Robinson at Brisbane and together had three sons and four daughters. On 11 June 1927 he died at his home "Langton", Norman Parade, Eagle Junction, Brisbane in June 1927 after several months of illness. He was buried the same day at

Nundah Cemetery Nundah Cemetery is a heritage-listed cemetery at 88 Hedley Avenue, Nundah, Queensland, Nundah, City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It was built from 1840s to 1963. It is also known as German Station Cemetery. It was added to the Queensland ...

.Sumner Richard
— Brisbane City Council Grave Location Search. Retrieved 15 April 2015.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sumner, Richard Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly Members of the Queensland Legislative Council 1859 births 1927 deaths Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Queensland Burials at Nundah Cemetery British emigrants to colonial Australia Colony of Queensland people