Robert Dunsmure (23 December 1852 – 4 August 1894) was a pastoralist and politician in colonial

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 ...

. He was a member 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 ...

from 1888 to 1893, representing the electorate of Maranoa.

Early life

Robert Dunsmure was born on 23 December 1852 in Edinburgh, the fourth son of Dr

James Dunsmure James Dunsmure FRSE FRCSEd (23April 181415October 1886) was a Scottish surgeon. He served as President of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Life He was born at 33 George Street in Edinburgh on 23 April 1814, the son of Susan Drysd ...

and his wife Catherine (née Hill). They lived at 39 North Castle Street in the

New Town New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz (South Korean band), The Boyz * New (album), ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** New (Paul McCartney song), "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * New (EP), ''New'' (EP), ...

. This prestigious Georgian house was the former home of Sir

Walter Scott Sir Walter Scott, 1st Baronet (15 August 1771 – 21 September 1832), was a Scottish novelist, poet and historian. Many of his works remain classics of European literature, European and Scottish literature, notably the novels ''Ivanhoe'' (18 ...

. He was educated at the

Edinburgh Academy The Edinburgh Academy is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private day school in Edinburgh, Scotland, which was opened in 1824. The original building, on Henderson Row in Stockbridge, Edinburgh, Stockbridge, is now part of the Senior Scho ...

Pastoralist

Dunsmure came to Australia in 1866, where he gained colonial experience on H. C. Douglas's property, Bringenbrong, in the Upper Murray District in

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 ...

. In 1874, he formed a partnership with Mr Douglas and Mr Menzies and bought Eurella Station from

Thomas McIlwraith Sir Thomas McIlwraith (17 May 1835 – 17 July 1900) was for many years the dominant figure of colonial politics in Queensland. He was Premier of Queensland from 1879 to 1883, again in 1888, and for a third time in 1893. In common with most po ...

and Mr Robinson. Dunsmure was the manager of the property for the rest of his life.

Politics

In the

1888 Queensland colonial election The 1888 Queensland colonial election was held between 28 April and 26 May 1988 to elect all members of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland. The election was a decisive defeat for Samuel Griffith's Liberals, with Thomas McIlwraith's Conserv ...

, Dunsmure defeated Herbert Hunter by a large majority and was elected to the

representing the electorate of Maranoa. He held the seat until the

1893 Queensland colonial election Elections were held in the Colony of Queensland between 18 April 1893 and 25 May 1893 to elect the members of the colony’s Legislative Assembly of Queensland, Legislative Assembly. This election was an early use of contingent voting in a gov ...

, which he did not contest.

Later life

Dunsmure died on Friday 4 August 1894 at his property Eurella Station near Amby, Queensland aged 42 years. He had contracted a severe cold which led to an inflammation of the liver, causing his death. Dunsmure was a foundation member of the Maranoa Masonic Lodge. His body was taken to the masonic hall in Roma where his funeral was held. The funeral cortege from the hall to the cemetery was held by his brother masons, each carrying a sprig of wattle blossom. The burial were conducted according to the rites of the Church of England chaplain and of the Masonic order, each mason placing the sprig of wattle on the coffin. His father erected a memorial to Robert and his brothers in

Dean Cemetery The Dean Cemetery is a historically important Victorian cemetery north of the Dean Village, west of Edinburgh city centre, in Scotland. It lies between Queensferry Road and the Water of Leith, bounded on its east side by Dean Path and o ...

in western

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

. It lies at the start of the dividing wall between the original cemetery and the northern extension.

References

Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly 1852 births 1894 deaths 19th-century Australian politicians Colony of Queensland people {{Australia-politician-stub