Vernon Redwood

Vernon Charles Redwood (14 April 1873 – 15 February 1954) was a maltster and member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly.[1]

Vernon Redwood
Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Drayton and Toowoomba
In office 18 May 1907 – 2 October 1909 Serving with Thomas Roberts
Preceded by	James Tolmie
Succeeded by	James Tolmie
Personal details
Born	Vernon Charles Redwood 14 April 1873 Blenheim, Marlborough, New Zealand
Died	15 February 1954 (aged 80) London, England
Nationality	New Zealand Australian
Political party	Ministerial
Relations	Henry Redwood (uncle) Francis Redwood (uncle)
Occupation	Maltster

Biography

Redwood was born at Riverlands near Blenheim, Marlborough, New Zealand,[2] one of 15 siblings to parents Charles Redwood (1836–1915) and his wife Mary Elizabeth (née Grimstone, 1843–1912).[1][3] Henry Redwood (1823–1907) and Francis Redwood (1839–1935) were his uncles.[3][4] The Redwood family members were all staunch Catholics[4] and his uncle Francis was the first Archbishop of Wellington.[5]

Vernon Redwood was educated by the Christian Brothers in New Zealand[1] before coming to Australia in 1893 where he found work on Westbrook Station where one of his duties was the cutting of prickly pear.[6]

In 1895 he became a maltster at the Perkins & Co brewery in Toowoomba[1] and many of his brothers joined him as maltsters. In 1897, his parents also emigrated to Queensland, with his father joining his sons in the malting business.[7] In the end, only four of his siblings remained in New Zealand.[3] In 1902, he established his own maltings business.[1] In 1904 the business was sold to William Jones & Son,[6] and he was its general manager until 1913. In 1913 he established the Redwood Toowoomba Grain Exchange but the business quickly failed and was liquidated later the same year.[1]

After being awarded £500 in a libel action against the Darling Downs Gazette, he moved to Europe and settled in London where he became a member of an anti-prohibitionist group, the Fellowship of Freedom and Reform.[1] In 1896 he married Mary Werkin Wakefield and together had 3 sons and four daughters.[8] He died in London in 1954.[1]

Political career

Redwood was a member of the Gowrie Shire Council and for some time was an Alderman on the Toowoomba City Council including its mayor in 1910.[1]

At the 1904 Queensland state elections he stood for the two-member seat of Drayton and Toowoomba but was beaten by fellow Ministerialists James Tolmie and John Fogarty.[9] When Fogarty died later that same year Redwood stood at the by-election but was once again beaten, this time by the Labour candidate, Edward Smart.[10]

He finally won the seat at the 1907 state election but held it for only two years before his defeat in 1909.[1]

References

1. "Former Members". Parliament of Queensland. 2015. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
2. Vernon Charles Redwood — State Library of Queensland. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
3. "The Late Mrs Charles Redwood". The Marlborough Express. XLVI (287). 3 December 1912. p. 3. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
4. Dickinson, Mollie. "Henry Redwood". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 28 February 2018.
5. Broadbent, John V. "Redwood, Francis William – Biography". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 8 April 2012.
6. "Vernon Charles Redwood". The Marlborough Express. XLIV (38). 18 February 1910. p. 8. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
7. "The Marlborough Express". XXXII (68). 22 March 1897. p. 2. Retrieved 29 March 2016.
8. Family history research — Queensland Government births, deaths, marriages, and divorces. Retrieved 23 February 2016.
9. "DRAYTON AND TOOWOOMBA (2)". The Brisbane Courier. LXI (14, 548). Queensland, Australia. 29 August 1904. p. 6. Retrieved 24 March 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
10. "TOOWOOMBA ELECTION". The Brisbane Courier. LXI (14, 578). Queensland, Australia. 3 October 1904. p. 5. Retrieved 24 March 2016 – via National Library of Australia.