James George Lee Steere KCMG (1830 - 1903)

Born 4 Jul 1830 in Ockley, Surrey, England

Ancestors

Husband of Catherine (Leake) Lee Steere — married 16 Jun 1859 in Hampstead, Middlesex, England, United Kingdom

Descendants

Died 1 Dec 1903 at age 73 in Perth, Western Australia

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• James George Lee Steere - art 1887 from The Possum, Perth, page 7 ^[1]

Biography

James Lee Steere KCMG is Notable.

Sir James George Lee Steere ^[2] (1830-1903), politician, was born on 4 July 1830, third of six sons of Lee Steere of Jayes, near Ockley in Surrey, England, and his wife Anne, née Watson. A fox-hunting Tory squire whose ancestors had held Jayes since before the Norman Conquest, Lee Steere late in life represented the western division of Surrey in the House of Commons, setting an example of paternalistic public service which deeply influenced James.
After education at Thames Ditton and Clapham Grammar School, James entered the East India Co.'s mercantile marine in 1845, rising in six years from midshipman to chief mate of the Sea Park. In 1852 he took his master's ticket on the Bombay and in 1854-58 was captain of the Devonshire.
In 1855 his younger brother Augustus had migrated to Western Australia. James decided to follow after his marriage on 16 June 1859 at St John's Church, Hampstead, to the belle of Perth, Catherine Anne, sister of George and (Sir) Luke Leake. . . . more . . adb.anu.edu

On the 16th June, at St. John's Church, Hampstead, by the Rev. Dr. Kynaston, ^[3]
James George Lee Steere, third son of Lee Steere, Esq., of Jayes, in the county of Surrey, England, to Catherine Anne, only daughter of the late Luke Leake, Esq., of Perth, Western Australia.

Oryx, 1860 Swan River Colony

He and his wife arrived in Western Australia on 21 April 1860 in the Oryx. His wife had a daughter while they were at sea.
Sailing with them was his wife's mother.

He acquired a lease of 100,000 acres on the Blackwood River and named it Jayes Station after the family estate in England.

In 1867 he was elected to the Legislative Council as representative for the Southern District.

In 1870 he was elected to the Wellington District for the Legislative Council. He was then chosen as leader of the elected members.

He lost his seat on the 1880 election but was nominated by the Government to fill on of its seats.

In 1884 he was appointed as a member of the Executive Council.

In 1886 he was made Speaker of the Legislative Council.

James George Lee Steere represented Western Australia at the Federal Conventions of 1891 and 1897, and was a member of the constitutional committee on each occasion.

He was originally knighted in 20/6/1888, and created a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) in the New Year Honour's list January 1900.^[4]

DEATH OF SIR JAMES G. LEE STEERE. (1903, December 2). Bunbury Herald
(WA : 1892 - 1919), p. 2. Retrieved July 31, 2020

Survived by his wife, four sons and seven daughters, Sir James George Lee Steere KCMG died at St George's Terrace, Perth, Western Australia in the early hours of the 1st of December 1903. He was given a state funeral and interred in Karrakatta cemetery. - KB00003088 ^[2]

People – LifeTree

• WELLINGTON AGRICULTURAL & PASTORAL SOCIETY. 1895. ^[5]
  PATRONS :-Hon Sir John Forrest, K.C.M.G ; B. A. Sholl, Esq., Postmaster General; Hon. H W. Venn, Commissioner of Railways; Hon. Sir J. G. Lee Steere.
  PRESIDENT -J. F Johnston, Esq, J.P.
  VICE-PRESIDENTS J. Partridge, Esq, J.P; R. H. Rose, Jr., Esq., J P.
  COMMITTEE :-Dr Lovegrove, J.P., Messrs R. H Rose, Sr, T, Hayward, and J. P. O Wellard, J's.P., E. C. B. Locke, J. G. Baldock, J. Ramsay, J. Hough, T. Hayward, Jr, E. Woodrow, E. Tyler and R L, Mackay.
  

Wellington District - Area Tree

Sources

• Shipping Intelligence. The Inquirer 25/4/1860. https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/66008808?searchTerm=oryx

1. ↑ Western Australian Gallery of Celebrities. (1887, August 13).
   The Possum, (Perth, WA ) p. 7. Retrieved December 17, 2020
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} G. C. Bolton, Steere, Sir James George Lee (1830–1903), Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University,
   published first in hardcopy 1990, accessed online 11 December 2017.
3. ↑ Family Notices (1859, August 10). The Inquirer and Commercial News
   (Perth, WA : 1855 - 1901), p. 2. Retrieved November 27, 2023
4. ↑ James George Lee Steere from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. first accessed online on the 25th of January 2021
5. ↑ ANNUAL SHOW WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 13th, 1895.
   Advertising (1895, October 19). Southern Times
   (Bunbury, WA : 1888 - 1916), p. 4. Retrieved January 16, 2019,

• James George Lee Steere from the Parliament of Western Australia's Members’ Biographical Register. first accessed online on the 25th of January 2021

• Basic information from "James George LEE STEERE from" on the Brady Family Tree in Western Australia - created and maintained by Darryl Brady. first accessed online on the 25th of January 2021

• Sir James George Lee Steere a Paper prepared by Miss C. Murray and read to the W.A. Historical Society by Miss C. Cammilleri on June 29th, 1945. as hosted on the Parliament of Western Australia's website. first accessed online on the 25th of January 2021 at: https://www.parliament.wa.gov.au/parliament/library/MPHistoricalData.nsf/0/07dd97e27c5dda26482577340028c82a/$FILE/MP209%20Lee%20Steere%20J%20G.pdf.PDF

Find A Grave: Memorial #213596978 - (no photograph)