| John Brodie Spence | |
| Term Start: | 1881 |
| Term End: | 1885 |
| Birth Date: | 15 May 1824 |
| Birth Place: | Scotland |
| Relations: | Catherine Helen Spence (Sister) |
| Children: | Lucy Morice (Daughter) |
| Mother: | Helen Spence née Brodie (1791–1887). |
| Father: | David Spence (1790–1846) |
| Occupation: | Banker, Politician, Commissioner of Public Works, Trustee of the State Bank, and Chairman of the board of the State Bank. |
| Cabinet: | Chief Secretary |
John Brodie Spence (15 May 1824 – 7 December 1902) was a prominent Scottish-born banker and politician in the early days of South Australia. He was a brother of the reformer Catherine Helen Spence.[1] And the father of Lucy Morice, a kindergarten worker, and social reformer.[2] Spence was born in Melrose, Scottish Borders to David Spence (1790–1846), solicitor and first Town Clerk of Adelaide, and Helen Brodie Spence (1791–1887).[3] He arrived in South Australia aged with his family on 29 October 1839 aboard .[4] [5] Other children of David and Helen on the passenger list were his sisters Catherine, Jessie, Helen and Mary and brother William.
The family was struggling to make ends meet, so after some seven months, he and his brother went farming, without much success,[6] and he moved to Adelaide in 1845, joining either the Bank of Adelaide or the Bank of South Australia, where he remained for seven years. He was afterwards for five years official assignee and curator of intestate estates, then in 1856 accountant in the Railway Department,[7] and from 1859 to 1864 Official Assignee and Curator of Intestate Estates, but left that office for the management of the English and Scottish Bank (soon to become English, Scottish and Australian Chartered Bank) which he held till 1878. Between around 1879 and 1881 he was involved with Arthur Harvey in land development at The Grange and East Adelaide.[8] [9]
He was elected a member of the legislative council in 1881, second on the poll with Henry Ayers, Buik, James Rankine, John Pickering, and Tarlton. He was Chief Secretary in the Downer Government from June to October 1885, when he retired to take the position of Commissioner of Public Works. In June 1886 he again took office as chief secretary, retiring the following month.[10] [11] On 5 February 1896 he was appointed one of the first five trustees of the State Bank, and was chairman of the board at the time of his death.
Spence's parents were David Spence (1790–1846) and Helen Spence née Brodie (1791–1887). Their other children were:
Spence married Jessie Cumming (1830 – 31 January 1910) on 22 April 1858. Their home was "Fenton", Glenelg. They had three daughters:
Magarey, Susan Unbridling the Tongues of Women: A biography of Catherine Helen Spence University of Adelaide Press 2nd edition 2010 (paperback). Available for free reading at Web.Archive.org
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