Thomas Howard Fellows
Encyclopedia
Thomas Howard Fellows (October 1822 - 8 April 1878) was an English rower
and an Australian politician and judge.
, Hertfordshire
, the son of Thomas Fellows, solicitor, and his wife Mary Howard. He was educated at Eton College
and then worked with his father. He studied in Pleaders' chambers and was later assistant to the master pleader, Thomas Chitty
. In 1847 he published The Law of Costs as Affected by the Small Debts Act and Other Statutes. Fellows was also an enthusiastic rower and rowed for Leander Club
. In 1846, he was runner up in the Diamond Challenge Sculls
to Edward Moon
and with E Fellows as partner runner up in Silver Wherries. He was also unsuccessful in the Wingfield Sculls. In 1847 he was runner up in Silver Wherries with T Pollock. He was one of the signatories to the revised rules for the Wingfield Sculls in 1848. In 1849 he was a member of the Leander crew which won the Stewards' Challenge Cup
. In 1850 he was runner up with C L Vaughan in Silver Goblets at Henley to James John Hornby
and Joseph William Chitty who was the son of Thomas Chitty.
Fellows took out a certificate as a special pleader and practised until called to the Bar in November 1852. Shortly after, he sailed to Australia in the Kent.
, and was admitted to the Victorian Bar in May. He considered seeking a police magistracy, but in time was appointed standing counsel to the Pastoral Association. He was a keen sportsman and in Melbourne often rowed on the Yarra River
and played football with the South Yarra Football Club.
In September 1854 Fellows was elected to the Victorian Legislative Council
for Loddon Province. He succeeded Robert Molesworth
as solicitor-general in the government of William Haines
in June 1856. In August 1856 he stood unsuccessfully for Central Province but was elected for the Electoral district of St Kilda
in September. In February 1857 he became briefly attorney-general in succession to William Stawell. He was then solicitor-general the second Haines ministry from April 1857 to March 1858. He was elected for Central Province in May 1858 by one vote and served in the ministry of William Nicholson
without portfolio from October 1859 to November 1860. In October 1863 he became postmaster-general in the ministry of James McCulloch
but withdrew in March 1864. Fellows was also a councillor for Prahran, Victoria
from 1861 to 1864 and in 1863 was elected one of the first borough councillors of Queenscliff, Victoria
where he spent his summers. He became mayor of Queenscliff in 1865.
In 1866 the Governor, Sir Charles Darling
asked Fellows, as leader of the opposition, to form a ministry, but they were unable to agree terms. Fellows was elected for St Kilda again in the 1868 general election and was Minister of Justice in the ministry of Charles Sladen
and leader of the government in the Legislative Assembly.
In 1870 Fellows became a trustee of the Public Library, Museums and National Gallery and in 1872 he helped to organize the exhibits from Victoria for the 1873 London International Exhibition. He served on a commission to look at accommodation for the branches of the Supreme Court. In December 1872 he became fifth judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria. Also in 1872 he published The New Constitution of Victoria.
Fellows died at his home in South Yarra at the age of 55. A plaque to his memory was put up in St. George's Anglican Church, Queenscliff to which he had contributed generously. Fellow Road in Queenscliff was named after him.
Rowing (sport)
Rowing is a sport in which athletes race against each other on rivers, on lakes or on the ocean, depending upon the type of race and the discipline. The boats are propelled by the reaction forces on the oar blades as they are pushed against the water...
and an Australian politician and judge.
Early life in England
Fellows was born at RickmansworthRickmansworth
Rickmansworth is a town in the Three Rivers district of Hertfordshire, England, 4¼ miles west of Watford.The town has a population of around 15,000 people and lies on the Grand Union Canal and the River Colne, at the northern end of the Colne Valley regional park.Rickmansworth is a small town in...
, Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire
Hertfordshire is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England. The county town is Hertford.The county is one of the Home Counties and lies inland, bordered by Greater London , Buckinghamshire , Bedfordshire , Cambridgeshire and...
, the son of Thomas Fellows, solicitor, and his wife Mary Howard. He was educated at Eton College
Eton College
Eton College, often referred to simply as Eton, is a British independent school for boys aged 13 to 18. It was founded in 1440 by King Henry VI as "The King's College of Our Lady of Eton besides Wyndsor"....
and then worked with his father. He studied in Pleaders' chambers and was later assistant to the master pleader, Thomas Chitty
Thomas Chitty
Thomas Chitty was an English lawyer and legal writer who was pupil master to a generation of eminent lawyers and played a significant role in documenting the legal reforms of the nineteenth century.-Early life:...
. In 1847 he published The Law of Costs as Affected by the Small Debts Act and Other Statutes. Fellows was also an enthusiastic rower and rowed for Leander Club
Leander Club
Leander Club, founded in 1818, is one of the oldest rowing clubs in the world. It is based in Remenham in the English county of Berkshire, adjoining Henley-on-Thames...
. In 1846, he was runner up in the Diamond Challenge Sculls
Diamond Challenge Sculls
The Diamond Challenge Sculls is a rowing event for men's single sculls at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England...
to Edward Moon
Edward Moon
Sir Edward Graham Moon, 2nd Baronet was an English rower and clergyman.Moon was the son of Sir Francis Moon, 1st Baronet and his wife Anne Chancellor. His father was a printseller and publisher and Lord Mayor of London. Moon was educated at Magdalen College Oxford, where he was a leading oarsman...
and with E Fellows as partner runner up in Silver Wherries. He was also unsuccessful in the Wingfield Sculls. In 1847 he was runner up in Silver Wherries with T Pollock. He was one of the signatories to the revised rules for the Wingfield Sculls in 1848. In 1849 he was a member of the Leander crew which won the Stewards' Challenge Cup
Stewards' Challenge Cup
The Stewards' Challenge Cup is a rowing event for men's coxless fours at the annual Henley Royal Regatta on the River Thames at Henley-on-Thames in England. It is open to male crews from all eligible rowing clubs. Two or more clubs may combine to make an entry....
. In 1850 he was runner up with C L Vaughan in Silver Goblets at Henley to James John Hornby
James John Hornby
John James Hornby C.V.O. was an English rower, and headmaster of Eton College from 1868 to 1884.-Early life:...
and Joseph William Chitty who was the son of Thomas Chitty.
Fellows took out a certificate as a special pleader and practised until called to the Bar in November 1852. Shortly after, he sailed to Australia in the Kent.
Political career in Australia
In April 1853 Fellows arrived in MelbourneMelbourne
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...
, and was admitted to the Victorian Bar in May. He considered seeking a police magistracy, but in time was appointed standing counsel to the Pastoral Association. He was a keen sportsman and in Melbourne often rowed on the Yarra River
Yarra River
The Yarra River, originally Birrarung, is a river in east-central Victoria, Australia. The lower stretches of the river is where the city of Melbourne was established in 1835 and today Greater Melbourne dominates and influences the landscape of its lower reaches...
and played football with the South Yarra Football Club.
In September 1854 Fellows was elected to 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...
for Loddon Province. He succeeded Robert Molesworth
Robert Molesworth (judge)
Sir Robert Molesworth was an Irish-born Australian Chief Justice and Solicitor-General.-Early life:Molesworth was born in Dublin, the son of Hickman Blayney Molesworth, a solicitor; he was descended from Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth. Robert attended Trinity College, Dublin where he...
as solicitor-general in the government of William Haines
William Haines (Australian politician)
Dr William Clark Haines , Australian colonial politician, was the first Premier of Victoria.Haines was born in London, the son of John Haines, a physician. He was educated at Charterhouse School and Caius College, Cambridge, where he graduated in medicine; he later practiced surgery for several years...
in June 1856. In August 1856 he stood unsuccessfully for Central Province but was elected for the Electoral district of St Kilda
Electoral district of St Kilda
The Electoral district of St. Kilda was an electoral district of the Victorian Legislative Assembly.-Members of St Kilda:-See also:*Parliaments of the Australian states and territories*List of members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly...
in September. In February 1857 he became briefly attorney-general in succession to William Stawell. He was then solicitor-general the second Haines ministry from April 1857 to March 1858. He was elected for Central Province in May 1858 by one vote and served in the ministry of William Nicholson
William Nicholson (Australian politician)
William Nicholson was an Australian colonial politician who became the third Premier of Victoria. He is remembered for having been called the "father of the ballot" due to his responsibility in introducing the secret ballot in Victoria.Nicholson was born in Whitehaven, Cumberland, the son of an...
without portfolio from October 1859 to November 1860. In October 1863 he became postmaster-general in the ministry of 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....
but withdrew in March 1864. Fellows was also a councillor for Prahran, Victoria
Prahran, Victoria
Prahran , also known colloquially as "Pran", is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, 5 km south-east from Melbourne's central business district. Its Local Government Area is the City of Stonnington. At the 2006 Census, Prahran had a population of 10,651. It is a part of Melbourne with...
from 1861 to 1864 and in 1863 was elected one of the first borough councillors of Queenscliff, Victoria
Queenscliff, Victoria
Queenscliff is a small town on the Bellarine Peninsula in southern Victoria, Australia, south of Swan Bay at the entrance to Port Phillip. It is the administrative centre for the Borough of Queenscliffe...
where he spent his summers. He became mayor of Queenscliff in 1865.
In 1866 the Governor, Sir Charles Darling
Charles Henry Darling
Sir Charles Henry Darling KCB was a British colonial governor.He was born at Annapolis Royal, Nova Scotia, the son of Major-General Henry Darling and nephew of General Sir Ralph Darling....
asked Fellows, as leader of the opposition, to form a ministry, but they were unable to agree terms. Fellows was elected for St Kilda again in the 1868 general election and was Minister of Justice in the ministry of Charles Sladen
Charles Sladen
Sir Charles Sladen, KCMG , Australian colonial politician, was the 6th Premier of Victoria.Sladen was born in England near Walmer, Kent, the second son of John Baker Sladen, deputy-lieutenant of the county. He was educated at Shrewsbury and later at Trinity Hall, Cambridge. In 1840, he graduated...
and leader of the government in the Legislative Assembly.
In 1870 Fellows became a trustee of the Public Library, Museums and National Gallery and in 1872 he helped to organize the exhibits from Victoria for the 1873 London International Exhibition. He served on a commission to look at accommodation for the branches of the Supreme Court. In December 1872 he became fifth judge of the Supreme Court of Victoria. Also in 1872 he published The New Constitution of Victoria.
Fellows died at his home in South Yarra at the age of 55. A plaque to his memory was put up in St. George's Anglican Church, Queenscliff to which he had contributed generously. Fellow Road in Queenscliff was named after him.