Portrait of E.M. Bagot Jnr from Undoolya from the S.A. Northern Pioneers' composite, 1850-1859 (shown in position on B 6912/3).

EDWARD MEADE BAGOT SENIOR

Born 13 December 1822 in Rock Forest, County Kildare. Died in 24 July 1886.

Bagot arrived in South Australia with his family 1840, from County Kildare in Ireland. His father was Captain CH Bagot.

Bagot married first wife, Mary nee PETTMAN on 1 August 1853. She died 5 March 1855. They had a child, Edward Meade Junior (1848-1881). Bagot then married a second wife Anne SMITH on 30 July 1857. She died 16 February c.1892. They had 6 sons and 6 daughters including;

George Wall

Ellen

Richard Nettlee

William Watermit

Charles Mulcra

Mary

Sophie Rose

Edgar

Bagot took up property in a remote corner of the River Murray at the border of South Australia with Victoria, known as 'Ned's Corner', and also had a property called 'Beefacres' on the River Torrens about five miles from the centre of Adelaide. He later gave up Ned's Corner to become a cattle and sheep agent in Adelaide. For a time he was in partnership in 'Poolamacca station' in the Barrier ranges and invested in gold mining ventures in the Northern Territory. Bagot was reported to be a very colorful personality in Adelaide, owned racehorses, and was a judge of livestock at the Royal Adelaide Show.

Bagot won a contract in 1870 for constructing portion of the Overland Telegraph line. His section of 500 miles (805 km) from Port Augusta to the Macumba River, north of Lake Eyre, was finished in the allotted time and he was paid 38,000. In 1872 he leased 575 sq. miles (1489 km), which he called Undoolya, stretching from the MacDonnell Ranges east to the Ross River. He acted as secretary of the South Australian Jockey Club when meetings were held at Thebarton, and when the Morphettville course opened he was often a judge. Widely known as 'Ned', he was a zealous supporter of most pastoral and other rural organizations, particularly the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society where his business acumen, judgment of stock and clear-headed advice were greatly valued.

EM Bagot Senior tragically lost his life after falling into a quarry near the Yatala Stockade. It was reported his funeral cortege included 200 hundred vehicles to the North Road cemetery.

Bagot, Edward Meade (Ned), 1822-1886

Bagot, Charles Hervey, 1788-1880