Guide to the Papers of the Denison Family (as filmed by the AJCP), 1819-1915
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Collection context
Summary
- Collection number:
- M1615-M1616
- Creator:
- Denison Family
- Extent:
- 19 items
- Language:
- English
- Preferred citation:
-
Acknowledgement of use of this material should refer to the location of the original material and to the Australian Joint Copying Project.
Items from this collection should include references to the location of the original material and to the AJCP nla.obj number, which serves as the online identifier for the digital copy.
Example: M Series: Journal of Capt. James Cook, 18 February 1770, British Library Add. MS 27885 (AJCP ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1234)
- Availability:
- Available
- Access conditions:
- Available for reference.
Background
- Content Summary:
-
A large collection of letters written mainly to the eldest sons William and Frank Denison by their parents Sir William and Lady Denison and their brothers and sisters in Sydney 1855-60. There are none written when they were in Tasmania. Apart from family news, they refer to: political events; travels in New South Wales; a visit to Norfolk Island and New Zealand; news from Van Diemen's Land; Church affairs; sport; theatre and other social activities; travels in India; and Australian natural history (animals and plants) as well as containing much parental advice. Includes letters from the Duke of Newcastle and Sir George Grey, estate papers, official papers and correspondence about armorial bearings.
Unfortunately, some of the letters, especially those of Sir William Denison, are very faint.
- Biographical / Historical:
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Sir William Thomas Denison (1804-1871) was the third surviving son of John Denison of Ossington Hall in Nottinghamshire. He attended Eton College and the Royal Military Academy at Woolwich, graduating as a lieutenant in the Royal Engineers. He served in Canada and later worked on harbour defences in southern England. He was promoted to the rank of captain in 1841 and made a lieutenant-colonel in 1854. In 1846 he was appointed lieutenant-governor of Van Diemen's Land and he was knighted in the same year. He held the post for eight years. In 1855 he took up the office of governor of New South Wales, with the additional title of 'Governor-General of Australia'. From 1861 to 1866 he was governor of Madras.
(Caroline) Lucy Denison (d. 1899) was the second daughter of Admiral Sir Phipps Hornby. She married William Denison on 1838. They had 13 children, ten of who survived childhood.
William Evelyn Denison (1843-1916) and Frank G. Denison (b. 1844) were the eldest sons of William and Lucy Denison. They both attended Eton College. William was commissioned as a lieutenant in the Royal Artillery in 1864 and promoted to the rank of captain in 1876. He retired from the Royal Artillery in 1878. He was elected to Parliament as the member for Nottingham in 1874, but did not stand again at the 1880 election. He was appointed deputy lieutenant of Nottinghamshire in 1875 and high sheriff of the county in 1895. He inherited the Ossington estate on the death of his uncle in 1873.John Evelyn Denison (1800-1873), 1st Viscount Ossington (created 1872) was the eldest of the nine sons of John Denison. He was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford. He entered Parliament in 1823, but only ever held one minor office in government. He was out of Parliament from 1837 to 1841, but returned as the member for the borough of Malton and retained the seat until his retirement in 1872. He was unanimously elected as Speaker of the House of Commons in 1857 and was three times re-elected to the chair unopposed.
Edward Denison (1801-1854) was the second surviving son of John Denison. He was educated at Eton College and Oriel College, Oxford, and was ordained as a priest in 1827. He was a traditional high churchman with liberal Whig sympathies. Lord Melbourne appointed him bishop of Salisbury in 1836 and he held the post until his death.
(Robert) Alfred Denison (1816-1887) was the eighth surviving son of John Denison. He migrated to New South Wales in 1840 and became a grazier. He was a member of the Legislative Council in 1851. For a time he was private secretary of his brother, Sir William Denison.
Edward Denison (1840-1870) was the son of Bishop Denison. He was educated at Eton College and Christ Church, Oxford. He was called to the bar in 1868 and in the same year was elected to Parliament. He had a strong interest in the state of the poor, especially in London, and was an active member of the Charity Organisation Society. In 1869 he decided to visit Australia to study questions of emigration and colonisation, but his health worsened on the voyage and he died in Melbourne.
Louisa Evelyn Denison (1841-1919) was the daughter of Bishop Edward Denison and Clementina Denison.
Access and use
- Conditions Governing Access:
- Available for Access.
- Conditions Governing Use:
- Many of the records digitised as part of the AJCP are still in copyright. Readers wishing to publish or reproduce documents should seek permission, in the first instance, from the owner of the original material.
- Preferred citation:
-
Acknowledgement of use of this material should refer to the location of the original material and to the Australian Joint Copying Project.
Items from this collection should include references to the location of the original material and to the AJCP nla.obj number, which serves as the online identifier for the digital copy.
Example: M Series: Journal of Capt. James Cook, 18 February 1770, British Library Add. MS 27885 (AJCP ref: http://nla.gov.au/nla.obj-1234)
- Location of this collection:
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Parkes PlaceCanberra ACT 2600, Australia
- Contact: