James Drummond (Australian politician)

James Drummond (1814–8 February 1873) was an early settler in Western Australia, and a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council from 1870 to 1873.

Born in 1814, most probably in Cork, Ireland, James Drummond was the son of botanist James Drummond. Nothing is known of his early life, but in 1829 the family emigrated to the Swan River Colony in what is now Western Australia, arriving on board the "Parmelia" on 1 June. For much of his early life James Drummond helped farm the family's land grants, first on the Swan River and after 1836 at their "Hawthornden" grant at Toodyay.

Shortly after relocating to Toodyay, Drummond obtained a tract of land adjoining the family grant, becoming a land owner in his own right. He then built the Toodyay district's first flour mill on the site. In 1841 and 1842, he went on a number of exploring expeditions with Captain John Scully.

During the early 1840s, Drummond's father and brother Johnston became increasingly involved in botanical collecting, and his brother John was appointed Inspector of Native Police at York, Western Australia. Consequently, James Drummond become increasingly responsible for the family farm, until by 1844 he was solely responsible for its management. In that year a severe recession hit the colony, and Drummond found himself deeply in debt. He continued to work "Hawthornden" under great financial stress for a number of years, but by 1850 was sufficiently recovered to take up a sheep station at Dandaragan. That year he joined a large group of pastoralists including Lockier Burges, John Sydney David and Thomas Brown in driving their stock overland to newly discovered grazing land at Champion Bay. On arriving, Drummond took up a large tract of land upon which he established the "Oakabella" station.

On 26 February 1857 Drummond married Martha Ann Sewell, who was an aunt of George Malakoff Sewell. They would have three sons and five daughters. Drummond's father died in 1863, and Drummond donated his father's herbarium to Ferdinand von Mueller.

From the mid 1840s, James Drummond became increasingly involved in the public affairs of the Toodyay district. He was a member of the Toodyay Roads Trust in the 1840s, and was also involved in the Toodyay Education Committee. Late in 1853 he was appointed a Justice of the Peace, and in 1857 he was elected to the Toodyay Roads Committee. By 1861 he was Chairman of the Toodyay Agricultural Society. By the time Western Australia gained responsible government in 1870, Drummond was widely acknowledged as the leader and spokesperson for the Toodyay district. On 31 October 1870, he was elected to Western Australian Legislative Council seat of Toodyay with a huge majority. He was a member of seven of the ten parliamentary committees set up by the First Parliament, and was also elected to the Central Board of Education. When a system of local government was introduced in 1871, Drummond was elected to the Victoria Plains Council, and the following year became a member of the Toodyay Roads Board.

Early in February 1873, Drummond returned home exhausted from having helped fight a bushfire that was threatening his paddocks and homestead, had a cold bath and caught pneumonia. He died about a week later on 8 February 1873, and is believed to have been buried alongside his parents at "Hawthornden".

References

*Black and Bolton 2001
*cite book|author=Erickson, Rica|year=1969|title=The Drummonds of Hawthornden|location=Osborne Park, Western Australia|publisher=Lamb Paterson