A formidable man who refused to stand still!
There are many notable people lying in Rookwood forgotten but in plain sight. The man I honour today has his surname as a municipality in Western Sydney. We may recognise the name of the place but do we know who the person was it was named after?
ARTHUR TODD HOLROYD -
Physician, Adventurer, Barrister, Judge, Mayor
Arthur was born on the 1st of December 1806 in London England to merchant Stephen Holroyd and Elizabeth, nee
Lofthouse. His father died when he was three years of age and he was educated
at private schools. At 18 he studied medicine in Winchester and then Edinburgh.
He married Sophia Rachel Abbs in 1830, they had one child, a female, Emily, the
following year, whilst he practised as a physician in London. Arthur decided
that the career opportunities as a physician were limited and studied to be a
lawyer. He was admitted to Lincolns Inn London in 1835 and decided after his
first year to take a "gap" year and travel! Yes, he was not struggling.
He studied Italian in Rome
and in Egypt became the first European to cross the Bayuda desert to Khartoum
and the first Englishman to visit Kordofan. There he witnessed horrifying slave
hunts and his disclosures about them lead to their abolition by Mahommed Ali
Pasha. Arthur was familiar with Arabic and travelled through Sinai, Palestine
and Syria. Upon his return to London, he read a paper about his Kordofan
experience at the Royal Geographical Society and was elected a fellow. In 1841
he was called to the Bar at Lincoln's Inn and practised on the northern
circuit. Already a director of a bank in London he was interested in the New
Zealand banking system and in 1843 he migrated there with Emily, Sophia
remaining in London, then moving on to Australia two years later.
Making his credentials
known, it was not long before he was admitted to the NSW Bar and set up a
lucrative career in the Bathurst area. He was elected to the semi-elective
Legislative Council representing the Western Boroughs. Under the first election
via the new constitution, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly as a
member of that seat but defeated at the next election. Arthur then represented
Parramatta in the 1861 by-election but was defeated at the next election. He then
left Politics admitting it was not a life for him.
Arthur had been living in
Erskineville whilst in Sydney but in 1855 he purchased the large
"Sherwood" estate from Dr William Sherwin located two miles from
Parramatta, an area we now know as Merrylands. Soon after Arthur built a lodge
on the land and renamed it "Sherwood Scrubs".
Arthur was appointed as a
Master of the NSW Supreme Court in 1866. At first as the master in Equity,
dealing with complicated land ownership, complex financial arrangements and
intestate estates etc. before adding master in Lunancy in 1879, dealing with
administering the estates of those incapable of managing their own estates due to
senility or illness amongst others. He served in both roles until early 1885.
Arthur was appointed as an Acting Judge of the Supreme Court in 1879 for a few
months.
When word was received that
Arthur's wife, Sophia had died in April 1868 at Barnet, North London, he
married Elizabeth Armstrong who had been his companion for many years in August
that year in the Parramatta Registry Office.
Arthur had many interests, a
director of the Australian Mutual Provident Society and the Ophis Gold Mining
Co. as well as a member of the Chamber of Commerce. He even manufactured
agricultural drainpipes and tiles at his Sherwood Drain and Tile Works that still operates today. Arthur
had a bowling green installed on his property, he published a pamphlet on
bowling and its rules in 1874 and was patron of the NSW Bowling Association.
His home was filled with African and Aboriginal artefacts.
In 1872 he helped to
establish the municipality of Prospect and Sherwood (Holroyd) and was its first
Mayor.
Arthur died at Sherwood
Scrubs on the 15th of June 1887 of old age, but he had been ailing for some time.
He was buried in Rookwood cemetery in the old Anglican section near the BB rose
garden with his second wife, Elizabeth and his only child Emily Sophia.
In 1926 the Prospect and
Sherwood Council voted to change the name of their municipality to
"Holroyd" after Arthur, the first Mayor of the municipality. In 1991
the Municipality of Holroyd became the City of Holroyd. The suburb of
Merrylands is named after his former English home.
Arthur Holroyd achieved so
much in his 80 years. He did not suffer fools, and many took offence to his
handling of legislation and some court decisions. His decisions might not have
been in strict line with policy, but he always tried to be fair and just. These
decisions did not stop him gaining respect from the municipality he created, a
thriving area of western Sydney.
For many years his resting
place was sadly neglected. In 2021, it was restored with a new name plate and
once again Arthur Todd Holroyd's name was in the spotlight once again.
For today's blog I have
relied heavily upon ancestry.com; the Australian Dictionary of Biography,
Wikipedia, Parliament of NSW website and trove newspaper references.
If you have any insights or
information to add to this blog today, please enter them below of add to the
group Facebook page found under
Rookwood Cemetery
Discoveries
or simply send me a personal
message via
lorainepunch@gmail.com
Until next week!
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