Robert Porter (c. 1825 – 1902) was an

alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many jurisdictions founded upon English law with similar officials existing in the Netherlands (wethouder) and Belgium (schepen). The term may be titular, denotin ...

and

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Brisbane Municipal Council The Town of Brisbane was a Local government in Australia, local government area of Brisbane in Queensland, Australia from 1859 to 1903. It was later elevated to city status and was the City of Brisbane from 1903 until it was amalagamated into ...

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 ...

, Australia.

Personal life

Robert Porter was born about 1825–1826 in London, England. Robert Porter married Sarah Martha Elizabeth Trowbridge (born about 1823–1824 in

Salisbury Salisbury ( , ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and civil parish in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers River Avon, Hampshire, Avon, River Nadder, Nadder and River Bourne, Wi ...

, England). They arrived in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ; ) is the List of Australian capital cities, capital and largest city of the States and territories of Australia, state of Queensland and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia, with a ...

in 1860 and settled in the home, Corio, in Wharf Street, Kangaroo Point in which they lived for the rest of their lives. They had the following eight children:Queensland Registrar-General for Births, Deaths and Marriages * Sarah Jane Porter, born 1848

Folkestone Folkestone ( ) is a coastal town on the English Channel, in Kent, south-east England. The town lies on the southern edge of the North Downs at a valley between two cliffs. It was an important harbour, shipping port, and fashionable coastal res ...

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

, England, died 1937

1851 Census for Folkestone, Kent, EnglandFreeBMD
/ref> * Alice Edith Porter, born 1851

, England, died Brisbane 1900 * Frederick Albert Lewis Porter, died 1946 * Marian Gertrude Porter, married to Thomas William Shackel in Brisbane on 3 December 1881, died 1937 * Flora Annie Porter, died 1943 * Catherine Ellen Porter, died 1943 * Mary Constance Porter, born in Brisbane on 6 September 1861, died 1934 * William Christopher Porter, born in Brisbane on 13 January 1865, died 1912 Robert Porter died at his home, Corio, Wharf Street, Kangaroo Point,

on 22 May 1902 aged about 76 or 77 years. He had been ailing for some time prior to his death. He was buried at Balmoral Cemetery (also known as Bulimba Cemetery).Obituary for Robert Porter
The Brisbane Courier, Saturday 24 May 1902, p. 5 His wife Sarah died in March 1909.''Death of Mrs Robert Porter''
The Brisbane Courier, Tuesday 16 March 1909, p. 7

Business life

Robert Porter was a contractor, mostly in bridge and

wharf A wharf ( or wharfs), quay ( , also ), staith, or staithe is a structure on the shore of a harbour or on the bank of a river or canal where ships may dock to load and unload cargo or passengers. Such a structure includes one or more Berth (mo ...

construction in both the northern and southern parts of

Public life

Robert Porter was an

for the Ward of Kangaroo Point from 1867 (1868?) to 1870 and then again from 1880 to 1888 (1885?), during which time he was

in 1882. He served on the following committees:Brisbane City Council Archives * Improvement Committee 1868–1870, 1881. * Legislative Committee 1868, 1869, 1882, 1884, 1888. * Bridge Committee 1868–1870. * Town Hall Committee 1868, 1869, 1885. * Wharfage Committee 1881. * Works Committee 1885, 1888. In the Brisbane Municipal Council elections of 7 February 1888, Robert Porter was declared to have won the election for the East Ward by 5 votes. Voting at that time was done by crossing out the names of the undesired candidates. His opponent

William McNaughton Galloway William McNaughton Galloway (1840 – 12 January 1895) was mayor of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia in 1889. He also built the now heritage-listed Breakfast Creek Hotel. Personal life William Galloway was born in Perth, Scotland in 1840, ...

claimed that a number of votes were ruled informal by the returning officer because the voter had crossed out a part of his name but had crossed out all of the name of his opponent (Robert Porter); Galloway argued that these votes should have been counted as votes for him. The matter was adjudicated in the

Supreme Court of Queensland The Supreme Court of Queensland is the highest court in the Australian State of Queensland. It was formerly the Brisbane Supreme Court, in the colony of Queensland. The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court allows its trial division to ...

on 15 February 1888 where the a panel of three judges decided that these disputed votes should be counted as votes for Galloway, thus electing him in the East Ward. Robert Porter was a Member of Board of Waterworks 1893–1901, resigning only due to his failing health (he died in 1902). Robert Porter was a Government representative on the Brisbane Fire Brigade Board for many years.

Notes

External links

Photo of Robert Porter, 1882
{{DEFAULTSORT:Porter, Robert Mayors and lord mayors of Brisbane 1820s births 1902 deaths Burials in Balmoral Cemetery, Brisbane 19th-century Australian politicians

Personal life

Business life

Public life

See also

Notes

External links