Thomas Garrett

Thomas Garrett (16 July 183025 November 1891) was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, newspaper proprietor and land agent. Early life Garrett was born in Liverpool, England to John Garrett and Sarah, and went to New South Wales with his parents when nine years of age. A year later he was bound to the printing business, but during his apprenticeship he ran away, and became a cabin-boy on H.M.S. Fly, then employed in resurveying the coast between Port Jackson and Hobson's Bay. The youth was soon sent back, and having finished his apprenticeship, he was engaged on a number of newspapers, subsequently being employed in the Government printing office, where he worked for three years. Mr. Garrett then turned his attention to journalism, and in 1855 established the Illawarra Mercury, and afterwards also the Alpine Pioneer and the Manaro Mercury. Politics His father entered Parliament in 1859 as the member for Shoalhaven. In 1860 Thomas joined his father in Parliament, sitting for the Monaro constituency, acknowledged as the lieutenant of John Robertson. In 1964 he moved to his father's old seat of Shoalhaven which had been vacated by Robertson, and he sat as member until 1871, when he resigned due to financial pressures to accept an appointment as a police magistrate at Berrima. He was bankrupted on 24 February 1872. Not caring for official life, he again entered Parliament, this time for Camden, for which electorate he sat until the general election in June 1892, when, on account of ill-health, he decided not to again contest the seat, and bade farewell to political life. He was Secretary for Lands in the third Robertson Ministry from February 1875 to February 1877. Garrett was accused of bribery in relation to positions within the Department of Lands, and insobriety affecting his capacity to fulfill his responsibilities as minister. Garrett resigned as minister and the government narrowly survived a censure motion by 29 votes to 26. In the fourth Robertson ministry he filled the same post from August 1877. Garrett had a disagreement with Robertson on the question of the Land Bill and resigned in October, however the resignation was not accepted until 19 November 1877. He was succeeded, as on the former occasion, by Ezekiel Baker.