Charles Hervey Bagot

Charles Hervey Bagot (17 April 1788 – 29 July 1880),^[1] often referred to as "Captain Bagot", was an Irish-born South Australian pastoralist, mine owner and parliamentarian, and was the ancestor of a number of notable South Australian citizens.

History

Bagot was born in Nurney in County Kildare, Ireland, son of Christopher Bagot and Elizabeth, née Clibborn,^[2] and in 1805 joined the British Army and was gazetted to the 87th Foot Regiment. He is reported as having served with distinction in India during the Mahratta War,^[3] and was promoted to the rank of Captain. About the year 1819 he was retired on half pay to Ennis in County Clare, where he was appointed to the Commission of the Peace, and generally lived the life of a country gentleman. In 1840 he emigrated to South Australia on the Birman with his wife Elizabeth and their five children, arriving at Port Adelaide on 17 December 1840.^[4]

Pastoralist

Around 1840 Bagot selected a section of 1500 acres (600ha) at Koonunga on the River Light, on which he ran sheep in partnership with Frederick Hansborough Dutton. The partnership was dissolved in 1843 and Dutton took the lease on another property near Kapunda, which he named Anlaby for a village in Yorkshire.^[5]

Bagot was the first to use John Ridley's reaping machine.^[6]

Copper mining

Towards the end of 1842 his youngest son Charles Samuel Bagot came across mineral specimens on his father's property near the site of the present Kapunda. Around the same time Francis Stacker Dutton found similar outcrops on nearby Anlaby, which he was developing with his brother Frederick Hansborough Dutton. When the Dutton brothers took steps to secure the land around this discovery, they learned of Bagot's find and together got 80 acres surveyed, tendered for it in the Government Gazette, and bought it for the fixed Government price for "waste lands" at £1 an acre. Later, when a second section was put up for auction, Dutton and Bagot had to bid up to £2,210 to secure it.^[7] They secured a mining lease, for which, with one Ravenshaw,^[8] he floated a company to work what was in 1844 the first copper mine in Australia (some 18 months before Burra Burra), and lasted until 1877.

Politics

Bagot was appointed as Member of the South Australian Legislative Council on 1 July 1844^[9] then was elected to the seat of Light 12 July 1851 until resigning on 7 July 1853^[1] and for "The Province" on 9 March 1857 until 27 March 1861 and for The Province again on 1 March 1865 until 29 January 1869.^[1] When he resigned in 1853, John Tuthill Bagot, a distant relation, was elected in his place.

In the first council Bagot distinguished himself by his opposition to Colonel Robe's proposals for endowing selected religious bodies and for imposing a royalty on minerals.^[10]

Other interests

In 1853 Bagot built the family residence "Nurney House" on Stanley Street (later 127 Kingston Terrace), North Adelaide, later largely rebuilt around 1930.^[11][12]

Bagot helped found North Adelaide Congregational Church in 1864 and was a leader of the Total Abstinence League. He published The National Importance of Emigration (London, 1863).

He was Chairman of the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society in 1848. (And his grandson Christopher Michael Bagot Jr. (1852–1899) was Secretary from 1890 to 1899.)

Family

Charles Hervey Bagot "Captain Bagot" (ca.17 April 1788 – 29 July 1880) married Mary MacCarthy ( – 17 January 1860) around 1815. He died in North Adelaide, South Australia.^[3] Their extensive family included:

• eldest son Christopher Michael Sr. (1817 – 8 November 1853) married John Cliffe Watts' eldest daughter, Margaret Elizabeth (ca.1823 – 6 November 1910) on 6 August 1846. They died at Koonunga and Nurney House, Stanley Street, North Adelaide respectively.^[13]

• Charles Hervey Bagot C.B. (18 May 1847 – 8 November 1911) married Laura Mildred Daniel (– 15 August 1879) on 22 July 1874, in London, moved to India. Second marriage to Alice Law ( – ) on 14 September 1886. With the Royal Engineers; by 1887 he had attained rank of Major, and Colonel in 1899. He was appointed Companion of the Order of the Bath in 1900.^[14][15]

• Beatrice (11 August 1876 – 4 September 1959 ) born at Roorkee, India. She married Arthur Lawford Wigan M.A. in 1896.
• Cicely (22 January 1878 – )
• son (11 May 1879 –)
• son (9 July 1887 – )
• daughter (28 November 1888 – )
• son (19 October 1891 – ) born at Rathgar, Ireland

• John Bagot J.P.(10 January 1849 – 29 August 1910 at Pennington Terrace) married Lucy Josephine Ayers (ca.1857 – 11 May 1945), daughter of Sir Henry on 24 September 1878. Home at Buxton Street, North Adelaide, later Park Terrace, Fitzroy until 1901, then "Forest Lodge", 19 Pine Street, Stirling. He was a director National Bank of Australasia from at least 1888 to 1893 His widow endowed a prize for botany at the University of Adelaide in his name from 1912.^[16]

• Walter Hervey Bagot (17 March 1880 – 27 February 1889) born at Fitzroy, married Josephine Margaret Barritt ( – 7 June 1946) on 18 November 1908. Home at 101 North Terrace. A noted architect, partner in Woods and Bagot, he rebuilt the family's "Nurney House" between Kingston Terrace and Stanley Street, North Adelaide and designed the garden for their "Forest Lodge" in Stirling, South Australia around 1930.
• Henry Charles Hervey Bagot (25 January 1886 – 27 February 1889)
• son 19 October 1891

• Mary Jane (23 July 1850 – 2 November 1901) married George Mathieson Turnbull (ca. 1840 – 29 November 1885) on 12 December 1868. Died at "Leith House" Barton Terrace.

• George Bagot Turnbull (7 May 1876 – 1 December 1911) married Elsie Stewart Patterson. He died of typhoid and pleurisy at Cottesloe, Western Australia. Their son, Don Turnbull, was a prominent tennis player and squash champion.

• Christopher Michael Jr. (15 June 1852 – 8 October 1899) married Eleanor Mary Hawker (1855 – 11 January 1939) on 1 February 1878. He was Secretary of the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society from 1890 to 1899. Home on Anthony Street, Largs Bay, councillor for Largs Ward, Town of Semaphore at the time of his death. Mrs Bagot moved to Heriot Bay then "Forest Lodge", Valdes Island, British Columbia sometime before 1914.

• Nesta Marguerite (20 October 1878 – 9 February 1882 at "Cliff Cottage" Port Elliot)
• Christopher George Seymour (23 June 1880 – 1975) Born at "Alverstoke", Glen Osmond. Married Frederica Turquand Clarke ( – ) on 30 November 1910 in Vancouver, Canada, settled on Valdes Island. He was in Pawtucket US http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article56685413
• Eleanor Ruth (11 May 1882 – ) at Nurney House, married William Robert Swan on 26 February 1906
• Bessie Violet (5 June 1884 – ) at Molesworth street, and married (later Sir and CBE) Edward Wilmot Francis Gilman (16 August 1876 – 1955) on 7 December 1904. He became a prominent public servant in Malaysia, finally Resident Councillor of Penang 1930–1931 then retired to Oxfordshire.
• Lieutenant John Frederick (13 February 1886 – 1961) born at the Grange, married Eileen Dubois Ive ( – ) of Woodville on 22 May 1915.^[17]
• Arthur Gerald Bagot D.S.O. A.M. (26 April 1888 – ) born at Unley Park, moved to Piawaning, Western Australia, married Noel Irene Harris on 29 March 1938.
• Francis Hawker "Frank" (11 March 1890 – 26 November 1952) born at Brighton
• Trevor Hope Bagot (30 December 1891 – ) born at Largs.
• Margaret Joanna (20 September 1894 – ) married William de M. Ive on 31 August 1915 at "Forest Lodge", Valdes Island.
• Aileen Diana (22 June 1898 – )

• Margaret Elizabeth Jr. (3 May 1854 – 10 August 1929).

• Mary Elizabeth (ca.1822 – 20 January 1892) married William Jacob (ca.1815 – 14 July 1902) at Castle Bagot in Ireland on 31 August 1842. and died at 192 Barton Terrace, North Adelaide. William, who arrived on the Rapid in 1836, was a draftsman with Col. William Light^[18] and ran a farm "Morooroo" (later often spelled Moorooroo) of 1,100 acres near Rowland Flat and the brother of pioneer Ann Jacob; Jacobs Creek is named for them.^[19]

• eldest son Charles Bagot Jacob (15 July 1844 – 30 October 1873)
• youngest son J. Chris Jacob ( – ) married Martha Esselbach on 1 January 1891. He successfully managed his father's farm, leased it in 1913 and retired to England.

• Edward Meade "Ned" Bagot (13 December 1822 – 24 July 1886) married Mary Pettman (1830 – 5 March 1855) on 1 August 1853. He married again, to the widow Anne Smith, née Walworth ( – 16 February 1892), on 30 July 1857. Anne had at least one child, James Churchill-Smith (1851 – 4 October 1922) by her previous marriage. (Mary was a daughter of Henry Pettman ( – 7 June 1857) of Hindley Street, one of Adelaide's first butchers. They arrived in South Australia on the Hooghly in 1839. Mary's sister Caroline Ann ( – 27 July 1898) married a William Smith of Reeves Plains;^[20] it is likely that Ned's second wife was the widow of his first wife's brother.) He purchased an extensive strip of land on Gilles Plains which he named "Beefacres" for fattening cattle brought down from the North.^[21]

• Edward Meade Bagot Jr. "Ted" (17 July 1848 – 5 June 1881) was born to Mary Pettman before her marriage to his father. Ted died at Dalhousie Springs.
• George Wallwall Bagot (2 March 1858 – 3 July 1919), often described as Ned's eldest son, married Ellen Keynes (ca.1858 – 12 January 1925) of Keyneton on 14 April 1881. He was a director of Bagot's Executor and Trustee Company, became partner in Bagot, Shakes & Lewis, land agents, with James Shakes, John Lewis (father of Essington Lewis), A. L. Harrold, W. Gilbert, H. W. Hughes, David James and George Dowling. The company absorbed Luxmoore, Dowling & Jeffrey Ltd. in 1906 then was absorbed into Goldsbrough Mort and Co. Ltd. in 1924.

• George Wallwall Bagot Jr. (15 September 1878 – )

• Richard Neetlee "Dick" Bagot (11 July 1860 – 20 January 1934) married Agnes Adeline King (ca.1860 – 4 August 1951) on 27 December 1887. Residence 7 Marlborough Street, St Peters.

• Frank Neetlee Bagot ( – ) married Caroline M. Holmes on 28 November 1918, with Elder, Smith & Co., Limited, living at Subiaco, Western Australia.
• John Neetlee "Jack" Bagot (17 December 1898 – )

• William Watermit Bagot (20 August 1861 – 16 July 1862)
• Charles Mulcra Bagot (9 March 1863 – 22 July 1895) married Ada Annie Westmacott, lived at Oodnadatta to 1907 then 30 Marlborough Street, College Park

• Charles Ernest (twin) (26 December 1893 – 7 December 1915) died of wounds at Gallipoli.
• Almerta Annie "Girlie" (twin) (26 December 1893 – ) born at Oodnadatta married E. Wilson in September 1926
• George Edgar (24 April 1895 – ) dairy farmer of Echunga married Isabel Galbin on 9 October 1928.

• Mary Bagot (25 August 1864 –) born at "Beefacres"
• Lucy Cowra Bagot (18 November 1865 – 5 February 1898) born at "Beefacres", died at (which?) brother's place, Walkerville
• Lille Nellnell (2 July 1867 – ) married sportsman and administrator Mostyn Evan (22 September 1861 – 25 December 1924) on 7 October 1891
• Sophie Rose (14 February 1869 – 5 November 1889) at Brougham Place, North Adelaide
• Annie Meade Bagot (31 July 1870 – 4 May 1910)
• Edgar Watermeit (8 September 1872 – 13 April 1895) With Bank of New South Wales; died at Coolgardie.^[22]
• Allan Walter Bagot (24 March 1874 – ) (a mourner at death of E.M.B and mentioned in will of John Haimes)

• Charlotte Owen Bagot (1824 – 22 October 1893) married Captain William H. Maturin C.B. (1814–1889) on 2 October 1845

• Sir Charles Samuel (1828 – 21 July 1906) moved to London, became a barrister, married Lucy Francisca Hornby on 29 July 1851 in Lancaster and became Commissioner in Lunacy. He may have been the Charles S. Bagot of East Sheen who adopted Beatrice, the daughter of Lt. Col. C. H. Bagot R.E.^[23]

References