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Sir George Richard DIBBS (1834 - 1904)

  • Date of Birth: 12/10/1834
  • Place of Birth: Sydney, New South Wales, Australia
  • Date of Death: 05/08/1904
  • Place of Death: Hunters Hill, New South Wales, Australia

Parliamentary Service

Position Start End Period Parliament Notes
Member of the NSW Legislative Assembly16 Dec 187412 Oct 18772yr(s) 9mth(s) 27day(s)
Member of the NSW Legislative Assembly5 Dec 18825 Jul 189512yr(s) 7mth(s) 1day(s)
Member for West Sydney16 Dec 187412 Oct 18772yr(s) 9mth(s) 27day(s)
Member for St Leonards5 Dec 18825 Jan 18831mth(s) 1day(s)11th (1882 - 1885)
Member for St Leonards10 Jan 18837 Oct 18852yr(s) 8mth(s) 28day(s)11th (1882 - 1885)
Member for Murrumbidgee31 Oct 18852 Mar 18864mth(s)12th (1885 - 1887)
Member for Murrumbidgee9 Mar 188626 Jan 188710mth(s) 18day(s)12th (1885 - 1887)
Member for Murrumbidgee24 Feb 188719 Jan 18891yr(s) 10mth(s) 27day(s)13th (1887 - 1889)
Member for Murrumbidgee1 Feb 18896 Jun 18912yr(s) 4mth(s) 6day(s)14th (1889 - 1891)
Member for Murrumbidgee29 Jun 189126 Oct 18913mth(s) 28day(s)15th (1891 - 1894)
Member for Murrumbidgee4 Nov 189123 Mar 18931yr(s) 4mth(s) 20day(s)15th (1891 - 1894)
Member for Murrumbidgee30 Mar 189325 Jun 18941yr(s) 2mth(s) 27day(s)15th (1891 - 1894)
Member for Tamworth17 Jul 18945 Jul 189511mth(s) 19day(s)16th (1894 - 1895)
Premier 7 Oct 188521 Dec 18852mth(s) 15day(s)
Premier 17 Jan 18897 Mar 18891mth(s) 19day(s)
Colonial Secretary5 Jan 188321 Dec 18852yr(s) 11mth(s) 17day(s)
Premier7 Oct 188521 Dec 18852mth(s) 15day(s)
Colonial Secretary26 Feb 188619 Jan 188710mth(s) 25day(s)
Colonial Secretary17 Jan 18897 Mar 18891mth(s) 19day(s)
Premier23 Oct 18912 Aug 18942yr(s) 9mth(s) 11day(s)
Colonial Secretary23 Oct 18912 Aug 18942yr(s) 9mth(s) 11day(s)
Standing Orders Committee No.431 Mar 187511 Aug 18754mths 12days8th (1875 - 1877)
Mineral Selection at Milburn Creek Committee No.1525 May 18754 Aug 18752mths 11days8th (1875 - 1877)
The Governor’s Opening Speech Committee No.115 Jul 187511 Aug 187528days8th (1875 - 1877)
Standing Orders Committee No.318 Nov 187522 Aug 18769mths 5days8th (1875 - 1877)
North Shore Gas Bill Committee No.519 Nov 18758 Dec 187520days8th (1875 - 1877)Chairman
The Case of Amelia Gould Committee No.1014 Dec 187529 Feb 18762mths 16days8th (1875 - 1877)
Report of Examiner of Coal Fields on Land held by Messrs Garrett and Greville Committee No.264 Aug 187617 Aug 187614days8th (1875 - 1877)
Standing Orders Committee No.314 Dec 187611 Oct 18779mths 28days8th (1875 - 1877)
Refreshment Room No.414 Dec 187611 Oct 18779mths 28days8th (1875 - 1877)
Oddfellows Hall, Elizabeth street Committee No.1822 Nov 18839 Oct 188410mths 18days11th (1882 - 1885)
Manly Gaslight and Coke Company’s Bill Committee No.337 Feb 188411 Mar 18841mth 5days11th (1882 - 1885)Chairman
Claim of Mr. Thomas Horton Committee No.3926 Feb 18844 Jul 18844mths 9days11th (1882 - 1885)
Library Committee No.319 Nov 188427 Nov 18849days11th (1882 - 1885)
Standing Orders Committee No.219 Nov 188427 Nov 18849days11th (1882 - 1885)
Refreshment Room Committee No.419 Nov 188427 Nov 18849days11th (1882 - 1885)
Refreshment Committee No.417 Mar 188527 Mar 188511days12th (1885 - 1887)
Library Committee No.317 Mar 188527 Mar 188511days12th (1885 - 1887)
Standing Orders Committee No.217 Mar 188527 Mar 188511days12th (1885 - 1887)
The Governor’s Opening Speech Committee No.19 Sep 18859 Sep 18851day12th (1885 - 1887)
The Governor’s Opening Speech Committee No.118 Nov 188518 Nov 18851day12th (1885 - 1887)
Refreshment Committee No.53 Dec 188525 Oct 188610mths 23days12th (1885 - 1887)
Library Committee No.43 Dec 188525 Oct 188610mths 23days12th (1885 - 1887)
Standing Orders Committee No.33 Dec 188525 Oct 188610mths 23days12th (1885 - 1887)
Claim of Mr Thomas Horton Committee No.1528 Jan 188610 Feb 188614days12th (1885 - 1887)
Library Committee No.415 Mar 188713 Jul 18873mths 29days13th (1887 - 1889)
Parliamentary Hansard Committee No.289 Jun 188712 Jul 18871mth 4days13th (1887 - 1889)
Library Committee No.321 Sep 188724 Jul 188810mths 4days13th (1887 - 1889)
Broken Hill Tramway Bill Committee No.2817 Nov 188728 Feb 18883mths 12days13th (1887 - 1889)
Hunter street, Newcastle, Extension Bill Committee No.4629 Feb 18883 May 18882mths 5days13th (1887 - 1889)
Trades Conciliation Bill Committee No.5317 Apr 18882 Oct 18902yrs 5mths 16days14th (1889 - 1891)
Library Committee No.324 Oct 188827 Jan 18893mths 4days13th (1887 - 1889)
Standing Orders Committee No.43 Apr 188916 May 18891mth 14days13th (1887 - 1889)
Standing Orders Committee No.327 Nov 188921 Dec 188925days14th (1889 - 1891)
Standing Orders Committee No.330 Apr 18903 Dec 18907mths 4days14th (1889 - 1891)
Standing Orders Committee No.226 May 18912 Jun 18918days15th (1891 - 1894)
Standing Orders Committee No.228 Jul 18911 Apr 18928mths 5days15th (1891 - 1894)
Sydney Electric Lighting Bill Committee No.74 Aug 189126 Aug 189123days15th (1891 - 1894)
Goulburn Water Supply Charges Bill Committee No.251 Dec 189115 Dec 189115days15th (1891 - 1894)
Standing Orders Committee No.55 Oct 189218 Oct 189214days15th (1891 - 1894)
William Stafford, ex Mounted Sergeant of Police Committee No.2312 Apr 189312 May 18931mth 1day15th (1891 - 1894)
Working of the Government Labour Bureau Committee No.2526 Apr 18932 Jun 18931mth 8days15th (1891 - 1894)
Standing Orders Committee No.327 Sep 18938 Dec 18932mths 12days15th (1891 - 1894)
Refreshment Committee No.527 Sep 18938 Dec 18932mths 12days15th (1891 - 1894)
Library Committee No.427 Sep 18938 Dec 18932mths 12days15th (1891 - 1894)
Standing Orders Committee No.323 Jan 18945 Jun 18944mths 14days16th (1894 - 1895)
Refreshment Committee No.523 Jan 189411 Jun 18944mths 20days16th (1894 - 1895)
Library Committee No.423 Jan 189411 Jun 18944mths 20days16th (1894 - 1895)
Children’s Protection Act Amendment Bill Committee No.920 Feb 18945 Jun 18943mths 17days16th (1894 - 1895)
Standing Orders Committee No. 229 Aug 18945 Jul 189510mths 7days16th (1894 - 1895)
Appropriation Bill. Committee No. 1521 Dec 18945 Jul 18956mths 15days16th (1894 - 1895)
Address of Condolence to Lady Duff. Committee No. 1619 Mar 18955 Jul 18953mths 17days16th (1894 - 1895)

Qualifications, occupations and interests

Merchant; ship owner. Educated at St Philip's Church of England school, then the Australian College under the Reverend J. D. Lang. Junior clerk with William Brown & Co., wine merchants, 1848. Joined his brother in Dibbs & Co., commission agents, c. 1854; associated with father-in-law in business ventures 1857-1859; then returned to J.C. Dibbs & Company, as manager of Newcastle branch and later the Sydney office. To Valparaiso, Chile, as corn factor, opening branch of J.C. Dibbs & Company in 1865; bankrupted by failure of Agra Bank 1866; returned to Sydney in 1867; by 1875 had paid creditors in full. Extended into importing and shipowning from 1869. Chairman, Australia Steam Navigation Co., taking leading role during 1878 seamen's strike over use of Chinese labour. Won public esteem when gaoled for a year 1880 - 1881 for refusing on principle to pay £ 2000 damages for slander. Announced conversion from free trade to protection in July 1887. Represented New South Wales at the 1891 Federal Convention. Represented New South Wales, Victoria, South Australia and New Zealand on a financial mission in London, 1892. Managing trustee, Savings Bank of New South Wales, 1896 - 1904.


Honours Received

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) in 1892.


Personal

Son of Captain John Dibbs, ship's captain, and his wife Sophia Elizabeth Allwright. Married on 18 March 1857 at Camperdown, New South Wales, to Anne Maria, daughter of Ralph Mayer Robey (a Member of the Legislative Council), and had issue, 2 sons and 9 daughters. Church of England.


Additional Information

Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 4 Personal papers in the Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales: 1. George R.Dibbs - papers, 1891 - 1904 (MLMSS 132); photographs in the PICMAN Database. 2. George R. (George Richard) Dibbs - papers, 1830, 1883 - 1893, including family letters (MLMSS 6524); photographs in the PICMAN Database. A biography is on the National Library of Australia's Federation gateway website: http://www.nla.gov.au/guides/federation/people/dibbs.html A biography is also on the 'Electric Scotland' website: http://www.electricscotland.com/history/australia/dibbs_george.htm David Clune and Ken Turner (Editors), The Premiers of New South Wales: Volume 1 - 1856 - 1901, The Federation Press, Sydney, 2006 [Chapter 10: "Dibbs, George", by TW Campbell, p. 169]



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