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Bank of South Australia (1837)

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26-648: The first Bank of South Australia was founded by the South Australian Company in the colony of South Australia in 1837 by British investors. It became defunct in 1892, when it was taken over by the Union Bank of Australia . The Bank of South Australia was created in 1837 by British investors. It was essentially a British venture, closely supervised by British directors, but utilising the knowledge and advice of local managers in South Australia. From 1840, it

52-427: A great deal of infrastructure: roads, bridges, mills, wharfs and warehouses. It contributed to the creation of the whaling, fishing and shipbuilding industries and encouraged mineral exploration . There was, however, a financial slump, or Depression , in the 1840s, and company dividends were unable to be paid out until 1848, after copper was discovered at Burra . The company continued to be an important part of

78-533: A resident commissioner, though in some places (including some of the Federated Malay States) similar officials were formally styled as residents , a more diplomatic title; otherwise another type of official was also possible (e.g. the British Consul in the protected state of Tonga , a Polynesian kingdom; an administrator on Nauru ; a mere chief magistrate on tiny Pitcairn ). In some cases his task

104-871: The British Empire , the high commissioner to whom was given the highest "regional" supervision (either residing in one of the constitutive territories, e.g. in the British Western Pacific Territories (BWPT), first by the governor on Fiji , then from 1952 onward on the Solomon Islands; or even in a neighbouring colony, e.g. the Governor of the Straits Settlements as High Commissioner for the Federated Malay States ) would commonly be represented in territories not comprising his residence by

130-695: The British Parliament finally gave approval and passed the South Australia Act 1834 on 15 August 1834. The association's original plan was for the colony to be more or less independent, but the government thought otherwise; a governor would represent the Crown (British Government), and would share administration of the new colony with the London-based South Australian Colonization Commission, which would be represented in

156-624: The Puerto Rico resident commissioner resides in Washington DC . State governments of today's Republic of India have a resident commissioner to represent them in New Delhi . Resident commissioners appointed by the British Crown typically reside in the territorial unit of which they are in charge. This also the case with most otherwise styled commissioners. In certain complex colonial units within

182-761: The South Australia Company , was formed in London on 9 October 1835, after the South Australia (Foundation) Act 1834 had established the new British Province of South Australia , with the South Australian Colonization Commission set up to oversee implementation of the Act. The South Australian Company was a commercial enterprise, and not officially connected to the British Government or

208-546: The Colonization Commission, but turned out to be indispensable in allowing emigration to the new colony to begin. The founding board of the company, headed by George Fife Angas , consisted of wealthy British merchants, with the purpose of developing a new settlement in South Australia , building a new colony by meeting an essential financial obligations of the South Australia Act 1834 . It bought up unsold land to

234-523: The Resident Commissioner. The first Resident Commissioner to be appointed was James Hurtle Fisher on 14 July 1836, but when George Gawler was appointed Governor in 1838 to replace John Hindmarsh , he was given the role of Resident Commissioner as well, effective in October 1838. The following territories had resident commissioners: While the post of High Commissioner for Southern Africa (HCSA)

260-630: The South Australian Company were: Most of the major streets in the Adelaide city centre were named after the founding directors of the company Most of the major streets in the Adelaide city centre were named after the founding directors of the company. Naming of the settlements streets was completed on 23 May 1837 and gazetted on 3 June by the Street Naming Committee (Adelaide) . Resident commissioner Resident commissioner

286-535: The South Australian Company, did not attempt to set up monopolies in the colony. The founding Board of Directors of the South Australian Company, established on 9 October 1835, were Angas as Chairman; Raikes Currie ; Charles Hindley MP; James Hyde; Henry Kingscote ; John Pirie , Alderman; Christopher Rawson; John Rundle MP; Thomas Smith; James Ruddell Todd; and Henry Waymouth ; with Edmund John Wheeler (Manager); Samuel Stephens , (Colonial Manager); and Edward Hill (Secretary pro tem ). The original purpose of

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312-429: The business affairs of Adelaide and the colony (later state) for over a hundred years. From 1872, the South Australian Company occupied offices on North Terrace on the corner of Gawler Place . The new building, "Gawler Chambers", was completed in 1914. It was wound up on 17 March 1949, with the management of its remaining business transferred to Elders Trustee & Executor Company Ltd . The colonial managers of

338-488: The colony by a resident commissioner , surveyor-general , and various other officers. The new Act also required that a certain amount of land had to be sold in the colony before anybody was allowed to emigrate. George Fife Angas, after resigning from the association, offered to set up a company to buy up the remaining unsold land, which was agreed by the Colonisation Commissioners, so long as this new company,

364-401: The company was to help prospective colonists meet the obligations set out in the South Australia Act 1834 . The United Kingdom did not want the "province" to be a financial burden, like other colonies, and imposed certain conditions through the Act. One of these conditions was the sale of real property (land) to the value of £35,000. Each director was required to buy at least £2,500 in shares in

390-548: The company. The biggest sales in land carried out by the company were done in the names of Angas, who purchased 102 lots of land of 135 acres (55 ha) on behalf of the company, which included prime real estate in both town and country, totalling 13,770 acres (5,570 ha), and with the right to rent an additional 220,160 acres (89,100 ha) of pasturage (worth £40,000), and the Currie family, who purchased £9,000. Research published in 2018 and 2019 concluded that these sales and

416-516: The conversion of some of the diggers' gold to bullion which could be used as a form of currency. A Bullion Act was passed and some 25,000 £1 coins were minted, but were not recognised as legal currency by the Bank of England . Tinline was awarded a purse of 2,000 guineas (£2,200; several millions of dollars in today's money), and an elaborate silver salver (now in the Art Gallery of South Australia ). Tinline

442-499: The creation of company, which secured the establishment of South Australia, link the colony's creation with slavery in the British West Indies . It was this purchase of land that enabled emigration to commence. It was purely a commercial venture, but without it, the colonisation plan would not have come to fruition. After a historic meeting at Exeter Hall on 30 June 1834, where the principles, objects, plan and prospects of

468-438: The level required by the Act for emigration to be allowed to begin. During the first years of settlement, the company built a great deal of infrastructure and contributed to the creation of industries such as fishing and mining, and it continued to play an important part in the business affairs of the colony (and later state) of South Australia for over a hundred years. It ended business in its own right on 17 March 1949, when it

494-670: The new Colony of South Australia were explained to the public, hundreds of enquiries from prospective emigrants arrived at the South Australian Association's headquarters in London. In January 1836 four ships sailed from England on behalf of the company, ahead of the Colonisation Commission's planned expedition. They developed a settlement at Kingscote on Kangaroo Island , in July 1836, but when farming proved unviable, both

520-457: The settlement and the company's operations were moved to the mainland. The company provided basic infrastructure for the new colony and sold or leased land to immigrants who came to settle. Over the course of six months, nine ships, which may be termed the First Fleet of South Australia , arrived in the new colony: During the first years of settlement, the company undertook the construction of

546-576: Was associated with or a subsidiary of the South Australian Banking Company. From 1868, there was only one body, the Bank of South Australia. At the time of the gold rush, and the South Australia colony was beset with, apart from the shortage of workers, a financial crisis due to the sudden increase in the availability of gold and the lack of sufficient currency to pay for it. The manager, George Tinline , created an assay office and mint , and

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572-628: Was comparable to the lieutenant-governor of a minor colony, especially as the high commissioner could be a British colonial governor doubling as such. South Australia was the only Colony in Australia authorised by an Act of Parliament , the South Australia Act 1834 , which set out the requirement for a Governor, representing the Crown, and a Resident Commissioner, reporting to Colonisation Commissioners. The survey and sale of land, as well as migration arrangements and funding, were responsibilities of

598-522: Was held 27 January 1847 - 31 May 1910 by the governors of the Cape Colony , then until 6 April 1931 by the governors-general of the Union of South Africa , after that date filled separately until 1963, there have been resident representatives in the constituent territories: In India, a resident commissioner is the representative of the state government with an office in New Delhi , who is also supposed to manage

624-736: Was liquidated by Elders Trustee & Executor Company Ltd . Many streets in Adelaide were named after men associated with the company. The South Australian Association (1833–1834) had lobbied the British Government for years to set up a new colony in southern Australia. The members of the Association were men of varied backgrounds, from philanthropists to merchants, including Edward Gibbon Wakefield , Robert Gouger , Robert Torrens Sr and George Fife Angas. The association underwent numerous negotiations and submitted and resubmitted many plans, until

650-525: Was or is an official title of several different types of commissioners , who were or are representatives of any level of government. Historically, they were appointed by the British Crown in overseas protectorates (such as Bechuanaland ), or colonies (such as South Australia ), and some still exist in this capacity. The United States of America once had a resident commissioner in the Philippines and

676-552: Was sacked by the bank in 1859 after severe losses caused by a customer defaulting. Officers: Board of Directors: (later occasionally titled "Colonial Manager" – South Australian Company title or to distinguish from branch managers?) In 1892, under pressure of falling share values, and following collapse of banks in Victoria, the Bank of South Australia was taken over by the Union Bank of Australia . South Australian Company The South Australian Company , also referred to as

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