Hugh Mosman
| Hugh Mosman | |
|---|---|
Hugh Mosman
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| Member of the Queensland Legislative Council | |
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In office June 1891 – January 1905 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
Hugh Mosman 11 February 1843 Mosman Bay, Sydney |
| Died | 15 November 1909 (aged 66) Toowong, Queensland |
| Parents |
Archibald Mosman Harriet née Farquharson |
| Occupation | Mine owner |
Hugh Mosman (11 February 1843 – 15 November 1909) was a mine owner and politician in Queensland, Australia. He discovered gold in Charters Towers. He was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Council.
Mosman was born on 11 February 1843 in Mosman Bay. Merchant Archibald Mosman (1799–1863) was his father, and his mother was Harriet née Farquharson Hugh received his education at The King's School in North Parramatta, New South Wales.
Mosman initially aspired to be a pastoralist, but failed to establish a successful career and was left broke. He visited Queensland in 1860, hoping to acquire properties there; this was also unsuccessful. Mosman decided then to try his hand at prospecting. He spent the next ten years mining, and in 1870 he revisited Queensland, choosing to work in Ravenswood.
On 24 December 1871, Mosman was travelling with miners George Clark, James Fraser, and his servant, Jupiter, attempting to locate missing horses. After he found them, Jupiter located some shining gold nestled in a creek. Mosman named the place where the gold had been located Charters Towers (Charters Tors) after the gold mining warden W. S. E. M. Charters. After Jupiter's discovery was reported in January 1872, Ravenswood's population blossomed to around 30,000 people. The discovery prompted a gold rush in north of Queensland.
Mosman's life was largely simple from that point forward. In 1882, Mosman's left forearm was blown off by dynamite, which had exploded earlier than it was supposed to. Mosman remained generally reclusive up until June 1891, when he became a member of the Queensland Legislative Council. He did not give many speeches, and they were noted as being "conservative and unremarkable". He resigned in January 1905.
In retirement, Mosman pursued his interest in horse racing, owning a number of horses. His horse Balfour won the Queensland Turf Club Derby in 1902.
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