Charles Cowper (29 September 1834 – 16 November 1911) was an Australian politician, pastoralist and senior public servant, the son of Sir Charles Cowper who served as Premier of New South Wales on five occasions between 1856 and 1870. During the period 1860 to 1865 Cowper was the elected member of various electorates in support of his father's political faction. In the late 1860s he invested in pastoral runs in south-west Queensland, which ultimately led to financial losses due to prolonged drought conditions. After a short stint as Police Magistrate at Bourke, Cowper was appointed as the Water Police Magistrate in Sydney. In 1874 he was appointed Sheriff of New South Wales, a position he held until his retirement in 1896.
Early and personal life
Charles Cowper was the eldest son of Charles Cowper and Eliza (née Sutton), born on 29 September 1834 at St. Phillip's parsonage in Sydney, the residence of his grandfather, Archdeacon William Cowper. In 1843, when he was aged nine, Cowper was sent to school at Stroud, under the supervision of his uncle, William M. Cowper, then chaplain to the Australian Agricultural Company.Mr. Ex-Sheriff Cowper, Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 20 June 1896, page 4.The Dean's Life, Newcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate, 16 June 1902, page 5. He later attended The King's School in Parramatta.
In 1849, when Cowper was aged fifteen, his father arranged for his son to be articled to the solicitor, James Norton. However, during this period the young man's health "broke down", and "eventually he took to station life as a means of restoring his strength".
By the early 1850s, Cowper's father had purchased the lease of 'Burrabogie' pastoral run on the lower Murrumbidgee River, in the Riverina district of New South Wales, which he held for about a year. The price paid for 'Burrabogie' was £500, plus one pound per head for the cattle on the run.Mr. Charles Cowper, Evening News (Sydney), 26 August 1893, page 2. Cowper (junior) managed the property for his father.Mr. Charles Cowper, Sydney Mail and New South Wales Advertiser, 13 June 1906, page 1561. One record states that Cowper managed the run in about 1852 when he was aged seventeen.An Old-time Legislator, Daily Telegraph (Sydney), 18 November 1911, page 15. However, government records indicate that Cowper (senior) held the lease of 'Burrabogie' from September 1853 to September 1854. Following major floods in the Murrumbidgee River in June 1852 and July 1853, Cowper (senior) sold the 'Burrabogie' run, making a profit of four thousand pounds in about twelve months.History of Floods In Wagga, City of Wagga Wagga website, Wagga Wagga Council; accessed 6 September 2023.
By the mid-1850s, Cowper was living at 'Chatsbury' station, a large property north of Goulburn, which he managed for his father.Old Pioneering Days, Crookwell Gazette, 9 March 1949, page 6. In September 1855 Charles Cowper (junior) of 'Chatsbury' was appointed as a justice of the peace (which entitled him to sit as a magistrate on a local Bench for the dispensation of summary justice).Colonial Secretary's Office..., New South Wales Government Gazette (Sydney), 2 October 1855 (Issue No. 140), page 2623.
Charles Cowper and Mary Copland Lethbridge were married on 11 October 1855 at the church of St. Mary Magdalen at South Creek, Parramatta. The bride was a grand-daughter of Philip Gidley King, the third Governor of New South Wales.Married, Empire (Sydney), 18 October 1855, page 4. The couple had eight children, born between 1856 and 1872.Family records, Ancestry.com.
Career
Political career
In March 1856, when responsible government commenced in the colony, Cowper tried to assist with the organisation of his father's political faction by managing the unsuccessful campaign for John W. Chisholm in the electorate of Argyle. His father, Charles Cowper (senior), who had been a member of the Legislative Council since 1843, was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly in March 1856 and by August that year began serving the first of five terms as Colonial Secretary. The political career of Cowper (senior) continued until 1870.
Kiandra
After the discovery of gold in November 1859 "on the Snowy Plains, situated upon the Australian Alps", there was a rush to the Kiandra diggings in the Snowy Mountains of New South Wales.Maneroo, November 19, Sydney Morning Herald, 26 November 1859, page 2. In February 1860 Cowper travelled to the Kiandra diggings with goods to sell and to establish a store at the locality.Snowy River Diggings, Freeman's Journal (Sydney), 10 March 1860, page 3. By April 1860 the post-office at Kiandra was temporarily operating out of Cowper's store on New Chum Hill.Kiandra Diggings,Sydney Morning Herald, 4 May 1860, page 5. By May 1860 Cowper and Goulstone's general store had been established at the diggings, described as "undoubtedly the neatest built house in Kiandra".Kiandra Diggings, Sydney Morning Herald, 28 May 1860, page 5.Anecdotal Photographs, Table Talk (Melbourne), 14 April 1893, page 3. Cowper became a prominent member of the community at the Kiandra diggings, as a magistrate and leading local agitation to improve roads and postal communication.Country News: Kiandra, Goulburn Herald, 23 June 1860, page 2. At one stage during 1860 the large body of miners at Kiandra were without police protection. Cowper, as magistrate, took charge of the situation and "swore in special constables, maintained order, and decided disputes, and kept things going till a new staff of officers was sent by the Government".The Vice-Regal Visit to Kiandra, Sydney Morning Herald, 12 January 1892, page 5. In October 1860 the telegraph line from Tumut to Kiandra was opened, with the telegraphic equipment being temporarily placed in Cowper's store.Kiandra, Bathurst Free Press and Mining Journal, 31 October 1860, page 4.
Member for The Tumut
In May 1860, Daniel Deniehy was elected in a by-election as the representative for The Tumut electorate after the resignation of the previous member, but at about the same time he was also elected in a by-election for the East Macquarie electorate. Deniehy opted for the East Macquarie seat, so the Tumut electorate remained vacant.Antony Green, The Tumut – By-election (Roll: 1,007), New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007 website, Parliament of New South Wales; accessed 31 August 2023. At noon on 1 November 1860, on the verandah of the Tumut Court-house, nominations to represent the Tumut electorate in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly were called for by the local returning-officer. Cowper had earlier arrived from Adelong, accompanied by "a number of gentlemen" from that township and preceded by a brass band playing 'See, the conquering hero comes'. Three candidates were nominated, Cowper, John Egan and Thomas Mate, of which Cowper was the only one present. During the nomination speeches, Cowper was described as "a bustling business man, one who has some stake in the Southern district, and who, to all intents and purposes, may be reckoned one of ourselves". At the conclusion of the speeches, those who had nominated and seconded the two other candidates withdrew their nominations and encouraged support for Cowper. The proceedings concluded with the returning-officer calling for a show of hands for each candidate. No hands were raised for the two absent candidates, so Cowper was declared in the by-election as the member for the Tumut electorate.Tumut Election, Empire (Sydney), 8 November 1860, page 2.Gundagai, Sydney Morning Herald, 3 November 1860, page 7.
Soon after Cowper's appointment as representative of The Tumut electorate, the New South Wales Legislative Assembly was dissolved on the advice of the Colonial Secretary, John Robertson. At the colonial election of December 1860 Cowper was re-elected unopposed for the seat of Tumut.Election for The Tumut, Yass Courier, 8 December 1860, page 2. After the December 1860 election, at the first session of the New South Wales parliament on 10 January 1861, the previous Premier, John Robertson, announced that the position of first Minister of the government would be taken by Charles Cowper (senior).Friday, January 11, 1861, Sydney Morning Herald, 11 January 1861, page 4.
A proclamation dated 29 August 1861 and published in the New South Wales Government Gazette declared that the person holding the office of Clerk of the Executive Council was "capable of being elected a Member of the Legislative Assembly".Proclamation, New South Wales Government Gazette, 30 August 1861 (Issue No. 204), page 1851. In late August 1861 Cowper (junior) replaced Edward C. Merewether as Clerk of the Executive Council, a position with a salary of £600 per annum.Clerk of the Executive Council, Sydney Mail, 31 August 1861, page 1. With Cowper being the son of the Premier and an elected member of the Legislative Assembly, an article in The Sydney Morning Herald made the point that his appointment rendered the previously apolitical administrative position as political, describing it as "a quasi Ministerial position, although not having charge of any public department".The Clerk of the Executive Council, Sydney Morning Herald, 31 August 1861, page 5. Cowper's appointment as Clerk to the Executive Council was the subject of newspaper speculation and criticism, some of which included suggestions of nepotism.Hereditary Officialism, Sydney Morning Herald, 3 October 1861, page 2.Editorial, Empire (Sydney), 2 September 1861, page 4.Pensions, Newcastle Chronicle and Hunter River District News, 21 December 1861, page 3. The controversial appointment necessitated a by-election, held in September 1861. On this occasion Daniel Deniehy ran against Cowper for the Tumut electorate, but Cowper was again elected.Antony Green, The Tumut – By-election (Roll: 951), New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007 website, Parliament of New South Wales; accessed 2 September 2023. Despite his senior position within the government, Cowper was not a member of the Cabinet.
Member for Orange
In October 1863, the Cowper government was defeated in parliament after criticism of the ministry's financial management.Editorial, Sydney Morning Herald, 17 October 1863, page 4. After the defeat of the government, James Martin was able to form a ministry which was sworn in by the Governor on October 16.The New Ministry, Freeman's Journal (Sydney), 17 October 1863, page 5. With the formation of the new ministry, by-elections were required for each of the members of the Legislative Assembly who accepted ministerial positions.Writs of Election, Sydney Morning Herald, 22 October 1863, page 4. Soon after the writs were issued for the by-elections, Cowper (junior) resigned as representative for the Tumut electorate in order to contest the Orange by-election against Martin (his father's political opponent).Re-election of Ministers, Sydney Morning Herald, 24 October 1863, page 4. An editorial in The Sydney Morning Herald was critical of the decision, describing the younger Cowper as "the mere mouthpiece of his parent", adding: "He is merely the representative of the firm of Cowper and Son, and not trading on his own account". The writer accused Cowper (senior) of putting his son in an odious position, permitting him "to sacrifice the duty he owed to the constituency for which he was elected, in order that he might disturb the course of that very representative Government of which Mr. Cowper professes to be the warmest admirer".Editorial, Sydney Morning Herald, 4 November 1863, page 4.