Thomas Cowan (South Australian politician)

Thomas Cowan (5 December 1839 – 14 September 1890) served one term as a member of the South Australian House of Assembly for the Electoral district of Yatala.

Mr
Thomas Cowan
MP
Member for Yalata
Member of the South Australian House of Assembly
In office
17 May 1875 – 15 April 1878
Personal details
Born(1839-12-05)5 December 1839[1]
County Tyrone, Ireland (now Northern Ireland)
Died14 September 1890(1890-09-14) (aged 50)
Milang, South Australia
NationalityBritish
SpouseMary Jane Armstrong[2]
RelationsJames Cowan (brother)
John Cowan (son)
John Lancelot Cowan (grandson)
Children5 sons and 2 daughters
Residence(s)North Adelaide, Two Wells, Redbanks, Islington, Milang
OccupationFarmer, Publican

Early life

Cowan who was born in County Tyrone, Ireland (now Northern Ireland), was the eldest son of John Cowan, a ploughman and shepherd, and his wife Margaret, née Lammey. Cowan, his parents and four younger siblings emigrated to South Australia, arriving in Adelaide on 3 August 1852.[3] The family initially settled in North Adelaide where Cowan assisted his father with a horse-drawn taxi business operating between North Adelaide and Adelaide. His father later purchased property at Two Wells (39 km north of Adelaide) where Cowan assisted with the operation of several businesses including a farm, a tavern and a post office. Cowan later started farming in the Two Wells area.

Political career

Cowan served on the District Council of Port Gawler as a councillor from 1868 to 1872 and as the chairman from 1873 to 1875.[4][5][6][7]

In 1875, Cowan was one of three candidates nominated for the two member district of Yatala,[8] however his nomination papers were declared informal.[9] The candidates declared elected, Wentworth Cavenagh and Lavington Glyde, resigned in order to hold an election at which Cavenagh and Cowan were successful.[10][11][12][13] Cowan did not re-stand for election in 1878.[14]

Late life

During the 1880s, Cowan encountered business difficulties and was on the verge of becoming insolvent.[15][16] Cowan considered re-standing for the Electoral district of Yalata when a vacancy was created in July 1890 by the death of James Cowan, his younger brother who was the one of the two current sitting members.[17] Cowan nominated but later stood down for medical reasons. The vacancy was subsequently filled by Richard Butler who had unsuccessfully stood for the seat earlier in 1890.[18]

Cowan died on 14 September 1890 at Milang, pre-deceased by his wife who died in June 1890 and survived by five sons including John who would also serve as a South Australian parliamentarian, and one daughter.[19][20][21][22]

See also

References
  1. 'Thomas Cowan, 1839-1890,' FamilySearch Community Trees, , retrieved 27 August 2012.
  2. "Marriages". South Australian Register. 24 August 1861. p. 2. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  3. "Passenger List - Epaminondas, Liverpool & Plymouth to Adelaide, 1852". www.theshipslist.com. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  4. "District Councils". South Australian Register. 4 January 1868. p. 4. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  5. "Association of District Chairmen". South Australian Register. 2 April 1869. p. 3. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  6. "District Councils". South Australian Register. 15 July 1872. p. 3. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  7. Two Wells, Mallala and District History Book Committee, (1985), Life around the Light; a History of the Mallala District Council Area, The Community Development Board of the Council District of Mallala, Mallala, SA, page 50, (ISBN 0 9588959 0 2)
  8. "The Nominations". The South Australian Advertiser. 14 May 1875. p. 3. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  9. "The Yatala election". The Express and Telegraph. 9 February 1875. p. 2. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  10. "Mr Thomas Cowan". Former members of the Parliament of South Australia. Retrieved 23 August 2022.
  11. "The elections: Yatala". Evening Journal. 19 May 1875. p. 3. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  12. "Abstract of News". South Australian Register. 20 May 1875. p. 6. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  13. Parliament of South Australia. Statistical Record of the Legislature 1836 – 2007; Compiled in the Offices of the Clerk of the Parliaments and the Clerk of the Legislative Council (PDF). p. 56.
  14. "The second batch of elections". Evening Journal. 17 April 1878. p. 2. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  15. "Meetings of creditors". South Australian Register. 24 March 1885. p. 4. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  16. "Insolvency Court". South Australian Register. 15 November 1887. p. 3. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  17. "Election for Yatala". South Australian Register. 5 August 1890. p. 6. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  18. "Election for Yatala". South Australian Register. 14 August 1890. p. 7. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  19. "Funeral Notices". South Australian Register. 10 June 1890. p. 2. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  20. "Death of Mr T. Cowan". The Advertiser. 15 September 1890. p. 4. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  21. "Deaths". The Advertiser. 12 June 1890. p. 4. Retrieved 24 August 2022 – via Trove.
  22. McGill, Maryanne. "Cowan, Sir John (1866–1953)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 23 August 2022.

Further reading
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