William Miles (Queensland politician)


William Miles was a politician in Queensland, Australia. He was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly.

Personal life

Miles was born on 5 May 1817 at Hails Quarry, near Edinburgh, Scotland, the son of William Miles and Alison. He married Mary Taylor in Colinton in 1838 and together they emigrated to New South Wales on the ship Duncan as assisted migrants and arrived at Sydney on 30 June 1838. He was employed on Mr. W. H. Chapman's station on the Macleay River, until 1852, when he commenced squatting on his own account on the Dawson River, in the then colony of Queensland.
William Miles died on 22 August 1887 at his home in Toowoomba, when an abscess in his ear lead to an inflammation of his brain. He had expressed a wish to be buried in the Toowong Cemetery in Brisbane and his body in a cedar coffin was conveyed by a special black-wreathed train from Toowoomba to Brisbane, where a largely-attended Presbyterian funeral was conducted at the cemetery. He was survived by his wife and two daughters, Jessie and Alice.

Public life

William Miles was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly representing the Electoral district of Maranoa from 27 September 1864 to 25 November 1873, for the Electoral district of Carnarvon from 20 January 1874 to 14 October 1875, for the Electoral district of Northern Downs from 14 November 1876 to 21 November 1878 and finally for Darling Downs in 1878. He was Colonial Secretary in the Douglas Ministry, from 15 March 1877 to 7 November 1877, when he was transferred to the Public Works Department where he was Secretary for Public Works from 7 November 1877 to 21 September 1878 when he resigned and was succeeded by Sir Samuel Griffith, in whose first Ministry he was Secretary for Public Works and Mines from 13 November 1883 till his death on 22 August 1887.
The town of Miles, Queensland is named after him; he owned a property Dulacca in that area.