| Vere Poulett-Harris | |
| Fullname: | Henry Vere Poulett-Harris |
| Birth Place: | Hobart, Tasmania |
| Birth Date: | 22 April 1865 |
| Death Place: | Perth, Western Australia |
| Family: | Lily Poulett-Harris (sister),[1] Richard Deodatus Poulett-Harris (father)[2] |
| Batting: | Right-handed |
| Club1: | Tasmania cricket team |
| Club2: | Western Australia cricket team |
| Columns: | 1 |
| Matches1: | 5 |
| Runs1: | 226 |
| Bat Avg1: | 22.60 |
| 100S/50S1: | 0/1 |
| Top Score1: | 60 |
| Hidedeliveries: | true |
| Catches/Stumpings1: | 3/– |
| Date: | 4 February |
| Year: | 2015 |
| Source: | http://www.espncricinfo.com/australia/content/player/5585.html Cricinfo |
Henry Vere Poulett-Harris (22 April 1865 - 7 March 1933) was an Australian cricket player,[3] runner,[2] footballer, gold prospector and gold mine owner.[4] [5] Vere Poulett-Harris played five first-class cricket matches for the Tasmania and Western Australia cricket teams between 1883 and 1899.[6]
One early news report described him as a "sterling cricketer and footballer"[7] whilst another described him as a "sterling batsman and good field."[8]
Vere Poulett-Harris' father was Richard Deodatus Poulett-Harris, an educationalist, priest, the founder of the Masonic Lodge in Tasmania and the co-founder of the University of Tasmania. Amongst his other activities, Richard was passionate about cricket and, in 1882, was elected a trustee of the Southern Tasmanian Cricket Association.[9] Furthermore, he encouraged the boys at the high school of which he was the headmaster to compete at sports.[10]
Vere Poulett-Harris left Tasmania to study medicine[11] but ended up working for a time as a bank clerk at Charters Towers before becoming a gold prospector. By 1898, he was prospecting in Western Australia.[12] [5]
He discovered the Corinthian gold mine in the Yilgarn Gold Field of Western Australia and was also one of the first people to prospect at Burtville.[12] He wrote an account of the discovery of Corinthian which was published in a newspaper of the time.[13] [14]
In 1911, he was called as a witness to testify during Chaffinch Mine Conspiracy trial.[5]
Vere Poulett-Harris' obituary states that he was "one of the outstanding athletes in the State, winning great success as a runner, cricketer and footballer. He played cricket for the Wellington Club and was regarded as one of the most graceful batsmen in the State. He was a member of the State team when a youth, and toured New Zealand with the Tasmanian team under the captaincy of the late Sir George Davies. Later he met with success as a batsman on the mainland. He was also a champion footballer and a member of the Cricketers' Football Club, some of his contemporaries being Messrs. W. H. Cundy, L. H. Macleod, K. E. Burn, A. Stuart and G. Watt. As a runner he defeated many of the recognised champions of his day."[11]
He died aged 67, leaving no wife or children.[11] His younger sister, Lily Poulett-Harris, founded women's cricket in Australia.[1]