Ernest George Henty was a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council

Western Australian Legislative Council

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

 from 1894 to 1895.

Born in Albury

Albury, New South Wales

Albury is a major regional city in New South Wales, Australia, located on the Hume Highway on the northern side of the Murray River. It is located wholly within the boundaries of the City of Albury Local Government Area...

, New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

 on 17 September 1862, Ernest Henty was the son of squatter Richard Henty, who was the first white child

First white child

The birth of the first white child was a celebrated occasion across many parts of the New World. Such births are a matter of pride for many townships, and they are commemorated with plaques and monuments at the location of the event. The birth was seen as such an honor that it was at times...

 to be born in the colony of Victoria

Victoria (Australia)

Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....

. The famous Henty brothers

Henty Brothers

Henty Brothers may refer to one of:* James Henty founded James Henty and Company, merchants* William Henty solicitor, member of the Tasmanian Legislative Council for Tamar, and colonial secretary in the Weston cabinet....

, James

James Henty

James Henty , pioneer in Australia and merchant.Henty was the eldest son of Thomas Henty and elder brother of Edward Henty, and was born at Tarring, West Sussex, England...

 and Edward

Edward Henty

See also Western District Edward Henty ,was a pioneer and first permanent settler in the Port Phillip district , Australia....

, were his great-uncles. As a youth Ernest Henty worked as a clerk for James Henty & Co., spending some years with the firm in Fiji

Fiji

Fiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...

. In 1883 he moved to Melbourne

Melbourne

Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...

, working as a journalist for the World and then the Melbourne Daily Telegraph. From 1885 to 1890 he was editor of the Upper Murray and Mitta Herald, a Tallangatta

Tallangatta, Victoria

Tallangatta is a small town in north-eastern Victoria, Australia. At the 2006 census, Tallangatta had a population of 950.The town is situated on the banks of the Mitta Arm of Lake Hume, approximately south-east of Albury-Wodonga along the Murray Valley Highway.-History:Tallangatta was founded in...

 newspaper. On 12 June 1890 he married Katherine Mary Harvie Alberta Cobham; they would have two sons and a daughter. At the time of his marriage his occupation was given as grazier.

Shortly afterwards, Henty emigrated to Western Australia

Western Australia

Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...

 with his brother-in-law, and the men established themselves as merchant

Merchant

A merchant is a businessperson who trades in commodities that were produced by others, in order to earn a profit.Merchants can be one of two types:# A wholesale merchant operates in the chain between producer and retail merchant...

s under the name Henty, Cobham & Co. Henty became a wine, spirit and tea agent. By 1895, the company had branches in Geraldton

Geraldton, Western Australia

Geraldton is a city and port in Western Australia located north of Perth in the Mid West region. Geraldton has an estimated population at June 2010 of 36,958...

, Southern Cross

Southern Cross, Western Australia

Southern Cross is a town in Western Australia, 371 kilometres east of Perth on the Great Eastern Highway. It was founded by gold prospectors in 1888, and gazetted in 1890. It is the major town and administrative centre of the Shire of Yilgarn...

 and Coolgardie.

On 16 July 1894, Henry was elected to a Central Province seat in the Western Australian Legislative Council

Western Australian Legislative Council

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

. He held the seat until his death at Coolgardie on 25 June 1895.