Robert Pyers was an Australian politician.

Born in Seaham

Seaham, New South Wales

Seaham is a suburb of the Port Stephens Local Government Area in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is located on the Williams River which flows into the Hunter River downstream from Seaham village at Raymond Terrace....

 to butcher Abel Pyers and Margaret McDermott, he followed his father into butchery, becoming a carrier between Maitland

Maitland, New South Wales

Maitland is a city in the Lower Hunter Valley of New South Wales, Australia and the seat of Maitland City Council, situated on the Hunter River approximately by road north of Sydney and north-west of Newcastle...

 and Glen Innes

Glen Innes, New South Wales

Glen Innes is a parish and town on the Northern Tablelands, in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. It is the centre of the Glen Innes Severn Shire Council. The town is located at the intersection of the New England Highway and the Gwydir Highway...

. Around 1870 he became a timber getter around the Clarence River

Clarence River

Clarence River may refer to:* Clarence River , in northern New South Wales, Australia* Clarence River , rises in the Yukon Territory of Canada and crosses the border several times into the U.S. state of Alaska...

 before finding success at the Solferino and Lionsville gold fields, which allowed him to establish a store. He married Clara Taylor in 1869, with whom he had ten children. In 1873 unwise mining speculations led to his bankruptcy; he was discharged in 1875 and moved to Tatham

Tatham, New South Wales

Tatham is a locality in New South Wales, Australia in Richmond Valley Shire. The name Tatham is derived from Bundjalung Jadham, meaning "child"....

 on the Richmond River

Richmond River

The Richmond River is a river in the north-eastern corner of New South Wales, Australia. It runs for approximately 170 km from the foothills of the Border Ranges past the towns of Kyogle, Casino, Coraki, Woodburn, where it turns northward and empties into the Pacific Ocean at Ballina. It has a...

 in 1880, returning to timber work. From 1884 to 1894 he was an alderman at Casino

Casino, New South Wales

Casino is a town in the Northern Rivers area of New South Wales, Australia, with a population of 9,400 people . It lies on the banks of the Richmond River and is situated at the junction of the Bruxner Highway and the Summerland Way....

; he was bankrupted again in 1887 and moved to Casino to become an auctioneer. From 1894 to 1904 he was the member for Richmond

Electoral district of Richmond (New South Wales)

Richmond was an electoral district for the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales from 1880 to 1913 in the Northern Rivers region and named after the Richmond River. It elected two members simultaneously between 1885 and 1889 and three members between 1889 and 1894, with...

 in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly

New South Wales Legislative Assembly

The Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The other chamber is the Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney...

, associated with the Protectionist

Protectionist Party

The Protectionist Party was an Australian political party, formally organised from 1889 until 1909, with policies centred on protectionism. It argued that Australia needed protective tariffs to allow Australian industry to grow and provide employment. It had its greatest strength in Victoria and in...

 and Progressive parties. Despite his opposition to Federation he contested several federal elections as an Independent

Independent (politician)

In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...

. Pyers died at Casino in 1915.