Daniel
Cooper
(1785-1853)
Positions Held
Director of the Bank of New South Wales, 1828
Biographical
A merchant, banker, investor, and shipowner, Cooper had been transported
to Sydney for life as a convict in 1816 after being convicted in 1815
at Chester for stealing. In 1818, he received a conditional pardon, and
in 1821, an absolute pardon. He soon began his business ventures, opening
a general store and investing in shipping. He became a partner in Hutchinson,
Terry & Co. in 1821, which was originally a flour-milling company,
but by 1822, it became involved in banking. In 1825, he and Solomon Levey
became the sole owners, and the company became known as Cooper and Levey.
The company was to achieve enormous success as it became largely involved
in shipping and exporting goods internationally. Cooper also established
the Australian Brewery in 1824, and was a founder of the Sydney Chamber
of Commerce. He was active in campaigns for equal rights for emancipists.
His second wife Hannah had also been sentenced to transportation to Sydney
for fourteen years for theft in 1816. His nephew Sir Daniel Cooper was
named his principal heir.
Place of birth: Bolton, Lancashire
Place of marriage: St Philip's Church, Sydney
Place of death: Brighton, England
Sources
1. D. Pike, gen. ed. Australian Dictionary of Biography. Volume 1, 1788-1850, A-H. Carlton, Vic.: Melbourne University Press, 1966.
Families | Lands | Abbreviations and Symbols