James Garden Ramsay

The Honourable John James Garden Ramsay (1827^[1] – 20 January 1890^[2]) was an industrialist and politician in colonial South Australia.

Ramsay was born in Edinburgh, Scotland, and served his apprenticeship as an engineer at the St. Rollox Ironworks in Glasgow, and came to South Australia in 1857, establishing four years later at Mount Barker an agricultural implement and machine manufactory, which represented the starting point of what later grew into the largest business of its kind in the colony.^[2]

Ramsay represented Mount Barker in the South Australian Legislative Assembly from 5 April 1870 (along with John Cheriton), and on 7 July 1880 was elected to the South Australian Legislative Council, for which he sat until of his death.^[3] Ramsay was Commissioner of Public Works in the Henry Ayers Ministry from January to March 1872 and in the two John Cox Bray governments from June 1881 to June 1884. Ramsay was Chief Secretary under John Cox Bray from 23 April 1884 to 16 June 1884; and under Thomas Playford II from 11 June 1887 to 27 June 1889.^[4]

On 20 January 1890, Ramsay died from the effects of injuries sustained through the bursting of a lamp in a railway carriage in which he was travelling.^[2] In 1886 Ramsay received the Queen's permission to bear the style of The Honourable within the colony.^[5]

References

1. "James Garden Ramsay grave monument details". Gravestone Photos. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
2. "Obituary.". South Australian Register (Adelaide, S.A.: National Library of Australia). 20 January 1890. p. 2 Supplement. Retrieved 27 August 2014.
3. "Statistical Record of the Legislature 1836 - 2007" (PDF). Parliament of South Australia. Retrieved 17 July 2013.
4. "Hon. James Ramsay". Former Member of Parliament Details. Parliament of South Australia.
5. Mennell, Philip (1892). " Ramsay, Hon. John James Garden". The Dictionary of Australasian Biography. London: Hutchinson & Co. Wikisource