Edward William Price

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Edward William Price
Government Resident of the Northern Territory
In office
1 July 1876 – 6 March 1883
MonarchVictoria
Preceded byGeorge Byng Scott
Succeeded byJohn Langdon Parsons
Personal details
Born1832
Dublin, United Kingdom
Died1893
London, United Kingdom
SpouseMina Hamilton

Edward William Price (1832 – 14 November 1893) was an Irish-born Australian civil servant, who served as Government Resident of the Northern Territory between 1876 and 1883.[1]

Life and career[edit]

Price was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1832. He joined the Royal Navy in 1851, serving initially as a midshipman aboard HMS Ajax. During the Crimean War, he was a member of the crew of HMS Simoon. For his service, he was awarded the British Crimean War Medal and the Turkish Crimean War Medal.[2] He asked to be discharged in 1856, and this request was granted.[1]

Price moved to South Australia in 1859, and became a civil servant the following year.[3] He spent several years working as a court clerk, initially for Gawler Town Local Court[4] and later for the Police Court at Adelaide.[5] In 1873, he was appointed a Justice of the Peace and Special Magistrate for South Australia.[6]

Price married Mina Hamilton, a fellow Irish emigrant, on 6 November 1860 in Adelaide.[7] They had six children. Price's wife and children all died together in 1875 when a ship they were travelling on, the SS Gothenburg, was wrecked off the coast of Queensland.[1]

On 1 July 1876, Price was appointed Government Resident of the Northern Territory, succeeding George Byng Scott. He remained in this position until 6 March 1883.[1] During his tenure, he was a prominent proponent of Christian values, especially on the issue of alcohol. He also started a Church of England congregation in the Residency, partly funded by the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel.[8]

After resigning from his position as Government Resident,[3] he travelled to London aboard SS Bowen. He died in London on 14 November 1893.[1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Edward William Price" (PDF). Northern Territory Government. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 February 2012. Retrieved 4 March 2012.
  2. ^ Mennell, Philip (1892). "Price, Edward William" . The Dictionary of Australasian Biography. London: Hutchinson & Co – via Wikisource.
  3. ^ a b "Obituary". South Australian Register. 25 December 1893. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  4. ^ "Appointments". South Australian Register. 17 August 1860.
  5. ^ "Police courts". South Australian Register. 29 April 1873. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  6. ^ "Appointments". South Australian Register. 19 December 1873. Retrieved 7 March 2012.
  7. ^ "Family Notices". South Australian Register. 7 November 1860.
  8. ^ Jack Cross (2011). Great Central State: The Foundation of the Northern Territory. Wakefield Press. pp. 213–214. ISBN 978-1-86254-877-0.
Government offices
Preceded by Government Resident of the Northern Territory
1876–1883
Succeeded by