Sir Benjamin Benjamin | |
---|---|
42nd Mayor of Melbourne | |
In office 1887–1889 | |
Preceded by | William Cain |
Succeeded by | Matthew Lang |
Member of the
Victorian Parliament for Melbourne Province | |
In office 1889–1892 | |
Preceded by | Sir James Lorimer |
Succeeded by | Robert Reid |
Personal details | |
Born | London, Middlesex, England | 2 September 1834
Died | 7 March 1905 Melbourne, Victoria, Australia | (aged 70)
Nationality | Australian |
Spouse | Fanny Cohen |
Children | 16 |
Sir Benjamin Benjamin JP (2 September 1834 – 7 March 1905) was an Australian businessman and politician. He was mayor of Melbourne between 1887 and 1889, before serving as a member of the Victorian Legislative Council from 1889 to 1892. [1]
Benjamin was born in London, Middlesex, on 2 September 1834 to Moses Benjamin and Catherine Benjamin ( née Moses). His family left for the Colony of New South Wales in 1843 on a boat named London. He was educated in a school run by the Reverend William Jarrett, a Congregational Church minister. [2]
After leaving school he joined M. Benjamin & Sons, his father's import and export business. In 1864 he and his brother-in-law Edward Cohen went into business together. [3] He retired from active involvement in business in 1878. [2]
Benjamin was heavily involved in the Melbourne Jewish community acting in various committee positions for the Melbourne Hebrew Congregation. [2] [4]
In 1870, he was elected to the Melbourne City Council [5] in the Albert ward, becoming an Alderman in 1881 and Mayor between 1887 and 1889. He was the second Jewish Mayor of Melbourne, with his brother-in-law Edward Cohen preceding him by over twenty years. He became the first Melbourne mayor and first Jewish Australian to receive a knighthood when he was made a Knight Bachelor in 1889. [2] [3]
In 1888, as mayor of Melbourne, Benjamin welcomed the Russian ship Rynda and Grand Duke Alexander Mikhailovich of Russia who was visiting the Australian colonies in a goodwill mission in light of tensions between Britain and Russia. [6]
Benjamin was elected as a member for the Melbourne Province of the Victorian Legislative Council in 1889 and served until 1892. [1]
His tenure as a member of the Legislative Council was brought to a close after he was declared bankrupt when the Imperial Banking Co. collapsed. He had offered personal guarantees on the bank's finances. [7] A subsequent court investigation cleared him but his reputation was reduced and he left public life. [2] [8]
Benjamin died at his home "Canally" at the corner of George and Powlett Streets in East Melbourne [9] on 7 March 1905. He was survived by his wife Fanny (née Cohen; c. 1839 – 18 February 1912) and 13 of his 16 children. [2] Lady Benjamin was a sister of Justice Cohen of Sydney. [10]
In 2009 a masonic apron believed to have been originally owned by Robert Burns and subsequently purchased by Benjamin was auctioned by Michael Bennett-Levy, a descendant of Benjamin. [11]
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Joseph Jacobs and Goodman Lipkind (1901–1906). "Benjamin, Sir Benjamin". In Singer, Isidore; et al. (eds.). The Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls.