James Macpherson Grant
Encyclopedia
James Macpherson Grant was an Australia
n solicitor who defended the Eureka Stockade
rebels and a politician who was a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly
and the Victorian Legislative Council
.
, Inverness-shire
, Scotland
, son of Louis Grant and his wife Isabella, née McBean. He emigrated to Sydney
with his parents in 1836 and was articled to Chambers and Thurlow, solicitors. In 1844 he paid a visit to New Zealand
and served as a volunteer in the Flagstaff War
against the Māoris. Returning to Australia he was admitted to practise as an attorney and solicitor in 1847, and became a partner of Mr Thurlow. In 1850, with a partner, he chartered a vessel and took supplies to California
, and in June 1851 was still at San Francisco
. Grant returned to Australia and in 1853 was a successful miner at Bendigo, Victoria
. He was practising as a solicitor at Melbourne
in 1854, and showed much sympathy for the diggers (miners) at the time of the Eureka rebellion in December 1854. The mayor of Melbourne, John Thomas Smith
, had called a meeting at the town hall to concert measures for keeping law and order. Grant and Dr J. H. Owens issued a placard asking the public not to go to the town hall, but to attend an open air meeting on the present site of St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne
. About 5000 people attended. Grant was one of the speakers and a committee was appointed to interview the governor. At the trial of the Ballarat
miners Grant acted as their attorney without fee.
, and when responsible government was established in 1856, was elected a member of the legislative assembly
for Sandhurst (now Bendigo). Grant did not stand at the 1859 election, but soon afterwards was elected for Avoca
and held this seat until his death. Grant joined the Richard Heales
ministry in February 1861 as vice-president of the board of land and works and commissioner of public works, and resigned with Heales in November. Grant was commissioner for railways in the James McCulloch
ministry from June 1863 to September 1864 and then became president of the board of lands and works and commissioner of crown lands and survey from September 1864 to May 1868. In 1865 Grant succeeded in passing a land act which promised to be little more successful than previous acts, the conditions being too exacting for poor men. One clause, however, which had been meant to apply to goldfield areas, allowed selectors to take up 20 acres (8.1 ha) at a rental of two shillings an acre. Grant interpreted this very liberally and many applicants were allowed to hold four licences and thus farms of 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) were established. However, in May 1869, Grant brought in a new land bill which allowed the selection of up to 320 acres (1.3 km²) with conditions of residence, cultivation and improvement at a yearly payment of two shillings an acre, with liberal terms to convert into freehold. Grant was then holding the same position in the second McCulloch ministry as in the previous one, and went out of office in September 1869. The act, however, came into force on 1 February 1870 and, though amended by later governments, was the basis of all subsequent land settlement in Victoria
. Grant earned great popularity from it, and was afterwards presented with a testimonial of £3000 raised by public subscription. He again held the lands portfolio in the Charles Duffy
ministry from June 1871 to June 1872, was minister of justice in the first Graham Berry
ministry for a few weeks in 1875, held the same position in the second Berry ministry from May 1877 to March 1880, and was chief secretary and minister of public instruction in the Bryan O'Loghlen
ministry from July 1881 to March 1883. He was able to do valuable work at the education department by insisting on the importance of merit in considering promotions. Grant had a stroke of paralysis in November 1884 and died on 1 April 1885, leaving a widow, a son and three daughters. Grant was buried in Melbourne General Cemetery
after a service at Elsternwick Presbyterian Church. A grant of £4000 was subsequently voted by parliament to his family.
Grant was regarded as having a genial nature and was generally liked. Although not a great orator, Grant had a clear grasp of questions which commanded attention and was also a thorough and hard-working administrator. His land act cleared up what seemed to be an almost hopeless position, and had great influence in the development of Victoria.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n solicitor who defended the Eureka Stockade
Eureka Stockade
The Eureka Rebellion of 1854 was an organised rebellion by gold miners which occurred at Eureka Lead in Ballarat, Victoria, Australia. The Battle of Eureka Stockade was fought on 3 December 1854 and named for the stockade structure erected by miners during the conflict...
rebels and a politician who was a member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly
Victorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of Victoria in Australia. Together with the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house, it sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Melbourne.-History:...
and the Victorian Legislative Council
Victorian Legislative Council
The Victorian Legislative Council, is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Victoria, Australia; the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit in Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Council serves as a house of review, in a similar fashion to...
.
Early life and legal career
Grant was born at AlvieAlvie
Alvie is a small crofting hamlet and civil parish, located on the south shore of Loch Alvie in the Badenoch and Strathspey area of Inverness-shire, within the Scottish council area of Highland....
, Inverness-shire
Inverness-shire
The County of Inverness or Inverness-shire was a general purpose county of Scotland, with the burgh of Inverness as the county town, until 1975, when, under the Local Government Act 1973, the county area was divided between the two-tier Highland region and the unitary Western Isles. The Highland...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, son of Louis Grant and his wife Isabella, née McBean. He emigrated to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
with his parents in 1836 and was articled to Chambers and Thurlow, solicitors. In 1844 he paid a visit to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
and served as a volunteer in the Flagstaff War
Flagstaff War
The Flagstaff War – also known as Hone Heke's Rebellion, the Northern War and erroneously as the First Māori War – was fought between 11 March 1845 and 11 January 1846 in and around the Bay of Islands, New Zealand...
against the Māoris. Returning to Australia he was admitted to practise as an attorney and solicitor in 1847, and became a partner of Mr Thurlow. In 1850, with a partner, he chartered a vessel and took supplies to California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, and in June 1851 was still at San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. Grant returned to Australia and in 1853 was a successful miner at Bendigo, Victoria
Bendigo, Victoria
Bendigo is a major regional city in the state of Victoria, Australia, located very close to the geographical centre of the state and approximately north west of the state capital Melbourne. It is the second largest inland city and fourth most populous city in the state. The estimated urban...
. He was practising as a solicitor at 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...
in 1854, and showed much sympathy for the diggers (miners) at the time of the Eureka rebellion in December 1854. The mayor of Melbourne, John Thomas Smith
John Thomas Smith
John Thomas Smith was an Australian politician and seven times Mayor of Melbourne.-Early life:Smith was born at Sydney, the son of John Smith, a Scottish shoemaker, and his wife Elizabeth, née Biggs. He was educated under William Timothy Cape...
, had called a meeting at the town hall to concert measures for keeping law and order. Grant and Dr J. H. Owens issued a placard asking the public not to go to the town hall, but to attend an open air meeting on the present site of St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne
St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne
St Paul's Cathedral, Melbourne, is the metropolitical and cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne, Victoria in Australia. It is the seat of the Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne and Metropolitan of the Province of Victoria...
. About 5000 people attended. Grant was one of the speakers and a committee was appointed to interview the governor. At the trial of the Ballarat
Ballarat, Victoria
Ballarat is a city in the state of Victoria, Australia, approximately west-north-west of the state capital Melbourne situated on the lower plains of the Great Dividing Range and the Yarrowee River catchment. It is the largest inland centre and third most populous city in the state and the fifth...
miners Grant acted as their attorney without fee.
Political career
In 1855 Grant was elected a member of the Victorian Legislative CouncilVictorian Legislative Council
The Victorian Legislative Council, is the upper of the two houses of the Parliament of Victoria, Australia; the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit in Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative Council serves as a house of review, in a similar fashion to...
, and when responsible government was established in 1856, was elected a member of the legislative assembly
Victorian Legislative Assembly
The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the Parliament of Victoria in Australia. Together with the Victorian Legislative Council, the upper house, it sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Melbourne.-History:...
for Sandhurst (now Bendigo). Grant did not stand at the 1859 election, but soon afterwards was elected for Avoca
Avoca, Victoria
Avoca is a town in the Central Highlands of Victoria, Australia, north west of Ballarat. It is one of two main towns in the Pyrenees Shire, the other being Beaufort to the south. At the 2006 census, Avoca had a population of 951.-Geography:...
and held this seat until his death. Grant joined the Richard Heales
Richard Heales
Richard Heales , Victorian colonial politician, was the 4th Premier of Victoria.Heales was born in London, the son of an ironmonger. He was apprenticed as a coachbuilder and migrated to Victoria with his father in 1842. He worked for some years as a labourer before establishing himself as a...
ministry in February 1861 as vice-president of the board of land and works and commissioner of public works, and resigned with Heales in November. Grant was commissioner for railways in the James McCulloch
James McCulloch
James McCulloch is also the name of the cashier of the Baltimore branch of the Second National Bank of the United States. This James McCulloch was not involved in the McCulloch vs. Maryland U.S. Supreme Court case....
ministry from June 1863 to September 1864 and then became president of the board of lands and works and commissioner of crown lands and survey from September 1864 to May 1868. In 1865 Grant succeeded in passing a land act which promised to be little more successful than previous acts, the conditions being too exacting for poor men. One clause, however, which had been meant to apply to goldfield areas, allowed selectors to take up 20 acres (8.1 ha) at a rental of two shillings an acre. Grant interpreted this very liberally and many applicants were allowed to hold four licences and thus farms of 80 acres (323,748.8 m²) were established. However, in May 1869, Grant brought in a new land bill which allowed the selection of up to 320 acres (1.3 km²) with conditions of residence, cultivation and improvement at a yearly payment of two shillings an acre, with liberal terms to convert into freehold. Grant was then holding the same position in the second McCulloch ministry as in the previous one, and went out of office in September 1869. The act, however, came into force on 1 February 1870 and, though amended by later governments, was the basis of all subsequent land settlement in 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....
. Grant earned great popularity from it, and was afterwards presented with a testimonial of £3000 raised by public subscription. He again held the lands portfolio in the Charles Duffy
Charles Gavan Duffy
Additional Reading*, Allen & Unwin, 1973.*John Mitchel, A Cause Too Many, Aidan Hegarty, Camlane Press.*Thomas Davis, The Thinker and Teacher, Arthur Griffith, M.H. Gill & Son 1922....
ministry from June 1871 to June 1872, was minister of justice in the first Graham Berry
Graham Berry
Sir Graham Berry KCMG , Australian colonial politician, was the 11th Premier of Victoria. He was one of the most Radical and colourful figures in the politics of colonial Victoria, and made the most determined efforts to break the power of the Victorian Legislative Council, the stronghold of the...
ministry for a few weeks in 1875, held the same position in the second Berry ministry from May 1877 to March 1880, and was chief secretary and minister of public instruction in the Bryan O'Loghlen
Bryan O'Loghlen
Sir Bryan O'Loghlen, 3rd Baronet , Australian colonial politician, was the 13th Premier of Victoria.-Biography:...
ministry from July 1881 to March 1883. He was able to do valuable work at the education department by insisting on the importance of merit in considering promotions. Grant had a stroke of paralysis in November 1884 and died on 1 April 1885, leaving a widow, a son and three daughters. Grant was buried in Melbourne General Cemetery
Melbourne General Cemetery
The Melbourne General Cemetery is a large necropolis located north of the city of Melbourne in the suburb of Carlton North.-History:...
after a service at Elsternwick Presbyterian Church. A grant of £4000 was subsequently voted by parliament to his family.
Grant was regarded as having a genial nature and was generally liked. Although not a great orator, Grant had a clear grasp of questions which commanded attention and was also a thorough and hard-working administrator. His land act cleared up what seemed to be an almost hopeless position, and had great influence in the development of Victoria.