William Rickford Collett

William Rickford Collett (1810–1882)[1] was a British mine owner[2] and Conservative politician.[3] Collett was elected Conservative Member of Parliament for Lincoln at the 1841 general election and held the seat until 1847 when he stood for election but was defeated.[4][3]

William Rickford Collett
1842 portrait by Richard James Lane
Member of Parliament
for Lincoln
In office
30 June 1841 – 29 July 1847
Serving with Charles Sibthorp
Preceded byCharles Sibthorp
Edward Bulwer-Lytton
Succeeded byCharles Sibthorp
Charles Seely
Personal details
Born1810
Died1882 (aged 71–72)
NationalityBritish
Political partyConservative

Biography

Collett was born in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, in 1810.[5] In the 1837 United Kingdom general election, he unsuccessfully ran as a candidate for Boston in Lincolnshire.[6] Between 1841 and 1847, he served as the Member of Parliament for Lincoln.[5]

In the late 1840s or early 1850s, Collett moved to New South Wales, becoming a director of the Australian Mutual Mining Association.[5] In 1854, he was appointed the Commissioner for Roads for the colony, undertaking surveying work on the Northern Road between Morpeth and Murrurundi.[5] In March 1864, Collett moved to New Zealand, becoming the Chief Superintendent of Roads and Bridges.[5] In this role, he facilitated the construction of rail south of Pōkeno, connecting the Mangatāwhiri River south to Meremere, and preparing the initial designs of the Panmure Bridge in Auckland.[5]

Collett was declared insolvent due to financial difficulties in 1866, due to the foreclosure of a gold mining venture at Denison Town, New South Wales which he had financed. He returned to the British Isles,[5] contesting a seat for the Conservative Party for the 1869 Tipperary by-election, however was unsuccessful, receiving only 12 votes.[7]

Collett died in 1882, and was buried at Deans Grange Cemetery in Dublin.[5]

References
  1. Rayment, Leigh (11 October 2018). "The House of Commons: Constituencies beginning with "L"". Leigh Rayment's Peerage Page. Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 24 November 2018.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  2. "William Rickford Collett". National Portrait Gallery. Retrieved 19 May 2020.
  3. Stooks Smith, Henry. (1973) [1844-1850]. Craig, F. W. S. (ed.). The Parliaments of England (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. pp. 202–204. ISBN 0-900178-13-2.
  4. Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885 (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. p. 187. ISBN 978-1-349-02349-3.
  5. "Panmure Bridge Swing Span and Abutment". Heritage New Zealand. Retrieved 3 January 2021.
  6. Stooks Smith, Henry. (1973) [1844-1850]. Craig, F. W. S. (ed.). The Parliaments of England (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. pp. 196–198. ISBN 0-900178-13-2.
  7. Walker, B.M., ed. (1978). Parliamentary Election Results in Ireland, 1801-1922. Dublin: Royal Irish Academy. ISBN 0901714127.
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