Christopher Rolleston

Christopher Rolleston CMG (27 July 1817 – 9 April 1888) was an English-born colonial public servant in Australia.

Christopher Rolleston CMG
Christopher Rolleston
Registrar-General of New South Wales
In office 1855–1864
Auditor-General of New South Wales
In office 1864–1883
Preceded by	William Mayne
Succeeded by	Edward Rennie
Personal details
Born	27 July 1817 Watnall, Nottinghamshire, England
Died	9 April 1888 (aged 70)
Occupation	Civil servant

Rolleston was born 27 July 1817 in Watnall, Nottinghamshire, the second son of Rev. John Rolleston and Dorthy Burdette.

A prominent colonial civil servant in New South Wales, Rolleston served as the Register-General of New South Wales (1855 – 1864). During his time as registrar general he was responsible for the launch of compulsory registration of births, deaths and marriages. He also served in a range of previous roles including Commissioner of Crown Lands in the Darling Downs (1842-1853), private secretary to the Governor of New South Wales, Sir William Denison (1855), as well as auditor-general (1864-1883).

His commercial appointments included director, European Assurance Society, the Mercantile Bank of Sydney and the Australian Gas Light Company, and a superannuation fund commissioner.

He served as the president and later a trustee of the Australian Club. For his lifelong service to colonial New South Wales he was appointed CMG in 1879.

Legacy

The town of Rolleston in Queensland is named for him.

Publications

• The Condition and Resources of New South Wales — A lecture delivered at Sydney, December 12, 1866. (1867)

External links

• Christopher Rolleston at the Australian Dictionary of Biography
• Works written by or about Christopher Rolleston at Wikisource
• Mennell, Philip (1892). "Rolleston, Christopher" . The Dictionary of Australasian Biography. London: Hutchinson & Co – via Wikisource.