Ben Rounsevell
William Benjamin Rounsevell (23 September 1843 – 18 July 1923), known as "Ben" or "Big Ben", was a
Early life
Rounsevell was born in Pirie Street,
One of his first business ventures, in conjunction with his half-brother John, was to supply tens of thousands of wooden sleepers for the new railway to Burra, South Australia.
Rounsevell claimed to be the first to run a
Returning to South Australia after an extended stay in Britain, he began farming at his property, Corryton Park,
Rounsevell purchased the wine and spirit business of Johnston, Furness and Blakeney, which he later sold to the
Political career
After his father's death Rounsevell moved to Burra, he was elected to the South Australian House of Assembly for Burra on 16 February 1875, which he held until 8 April 1890 when he was elected to the seat of Port Adelaide, holding that seat until 14 April 1893.[3] From 29 April 1899 he again represented Burra, holding the seat until 2 May 1902 when it was abolished; from 3 May 1903 until 2 November 1906 he held the new seat of Burra Burra.[3]
Rounsevell served as Treasurer of South Australia under William Morgan from 10 May 1881 to 24 June 1881; under Sir John Colton from 16 June 1884 to 16 June 1885 (when he introduced land and income taxes), and under Thomas Playford II from 6 January 1892 to 21 June 1892 and under John Downer from 15 October 1892 to 12 May 1893.[3]
Rounsevell was Commissioner of Public Works from 19 August 1890 to 6 January 1892[3] under Playford, when he introduced the Happy Valley reservoir scheme. Rounsevell was again Commissioner of Public Works briefly from 1 to 8 December 1899 in the eight-day ministry of Vaiben Louis Solomon[3] when he purchased the Holdfast Bay Railway Company for the State.
Family and other interests
He was a longtime member of the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society and its president from 1911 to 1912.
He was a director and for many years chairman of the firms
He was a member of the Adelaide Theosophical Society, the major beneficiary of his will.[4]
He was also a Vice President of the South Park Football Club an inaugural team in the SAFA from 1877 to 1884.
He was a keen horseman with stables at
In 1875 he took over "Tremere" (now demolished), the residence his father had owned at Glenelg, and was involved in local affairs, serving as mayor from 1880 to 1882 and 1912 to 1913.
He married Louisa Ann Carvosso (c. 1826 – c. 21 August 1912) on 14 March 1864.[6] They had no children. Louisa Ann Carvosso's sister Jane Anna Earle was the mother of feminist Bessie Rischbieth OBE.[6]
Rounsevell died after a long illness in Glenelg, South Australia. "Big breezy Ben" as he was known, was a very large man with a commanding presence. When in Parliament he spoke seldom and when he did it was short, to the point and factual.[7]
References
- ^ ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 18 January 2014.
- ^ The Mail. p. 2. Retrieved 14 September 2012 – via Trove.
- ^ a b c d e "Hon William Rounsevell". Former members of the Parliament of South Australia. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
- ^ "Personal". The Mercury. 17 August 1923. p. 6. Retrieved 11 September 2012 – via Trove.
- The Register. 11 August 1923. p. 8. Retrieved 11 September 2012 – via Trove.
- ^ a b "Family Notices". South Australian Register. 15 March 1864. p. 2. Retrieved 16 September 2014 – via Trove.
- The Register. Adelaide. 12 April 1923. p. 4. Retrieved 20 September 2012 – via Trove.
Bibliography
Rounsevell, James Corryton (1992), The Rounsevell family in early South Australia (2nd ed.), J.C. Rounsevell, retrieved 20 September 2012
