Sir William Wellington Cairns, KCMG (3 March 1828 - 9 June 1888) was a British colonial administrator. He was the Governor of Queensland and the Governor of Trinidad.

Quick Facts Sir William Wellington CairnsKCMG, Governor of Trinidad ...
Sir William Wellington Cairns
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Governor of Trinidad
In office
2 May 1874  27 May 1874
MonarchQueen Victoria
Preceded byJames Robert Longden
Succeeded byHenry Turner Irving
4th Governor of Queensland
In office
23 January 1875  14 March 1877
MonarchQueen Victoria
Preceded byGeorge Phipps, 2nd Marquess of Normanby
Succeeded bySir Arthur Edward Kennedy
Personal details
Born(1828-03-03)3 March 1828
County Down, Ireland, UK
Died9 July 1888(1888-07-09) (aged 60)
London, England, UK
NationalityUnited Kingdom British
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Early life

Cairns was born in Belfast, Ireland on 3 March 1828 (as indicated on his grave stone). His parents were William Cairns, a property owner at Cultra, County Down and was a captain in the 14th Regiment, and his second marriage Matilda Beggs, daughter of Francis Beggs of the Grange, Malahide.[1]

Trinidad and Australia

He served in various senior colonial civil service posts in the British Empire including Trinidad,[2][3] moving due to health issues,[4] before being appointed Governor of Queensland in January 1875. He held the post for two years before becoming the Administrator of South Australia in 1877.[5] Cairns was given a CMG in 1874, followed by a knighthood in 1877.[6]

Later reflections of his contributions to colonial public life were not considered highly:

Of all the pestilent "returned colonists" who misrepresent things Australian in London perhaps not one is equal as a nuisance to a retired Australian Governor.[7]

Return

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The grave of William Wellington Cairns, Brompton Cemetery, London

He subsequently returned to England where he died in London on 7 July 1888,[1][8][9] unmarried.[10] He is buried in a modest grave against the east wall of Brompton Cemetery near the north-east corner with Anna Maria Cairns, his sister.[11]

Legacy

The city of Cairns in Queensland was named after him in 1876.[12][13][14]

References

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