Australian Army Museum of Western Australia > Records

Early Commonwealth, FINNERTY, Goldfields Regiment, 1906

Subcollections
Uniforms and Equipment Pre 1914
Overview

Studio Portrait of John Michael FINNERTY, Goldfields Regiment

Historical information

John Michael Finnerty (1853–1913), mining warden and magistrate, was born on 31 January 1853 in Limerick, Ireland, to army officer Charles Finnerty and Elizabeth (née Mathews). The family emigrated to Western Australia in 1859, where his father served as a military pensioners’ staff officer in Fremantle. John attended Rugby School in England from 1867 to 1872 before returning in 1873 to clerk for Sir Archibald Burt.
From 1878 to 1882, Finnerty worked a pastoral lease on the Gascoyne River with John H. Monger. By 1886, as police inspector in Derby, he witnessed the Kimberley goldfield's proclamation. The following year, he became warden and magistrate at Halls Creek, managing Western Australia’s first gold rush. In 1889, he moved to Southern Cross on the Yilgarn goldfield, later becoming resident magistrate.
In 1892, Arthur Bayley’s gold discovery led Finnerty to name the site Coolgardie, sparking the colony’s greatest gold rush. He facilitated vital water supplies and managed diggers’ claims during shortages. Appointed to Coolgardie in 1894, he oversaw its rapid growth before relocating to Kalgoorlie in 1900. . With the rank of lieutenant-colonel he commanded the Goldfields Regiment of the Volunteer Defence Force. A great raconteur, he wore a full beard with a 'walrus' moustache and had a commanding but genial presence.
Retiring in 1911, Finnerty died near Geraldton in 1913. Respected for his fairness and leadership, he was a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, a Freemason, and a celebrated community figure.

Details

Details

Registration number
cwa-org-32-AMWA28407
Width
103 mm
Height or length
163 mm
Contextual Information

Accession Record P1900.2962

Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

Australian Army Museum of Western Australia

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A historical black-and-white photograph of a man wearing a military uniform of the Goldfields Regiment, including a peaked cap adorned with an insignia. He has a thick beard and mustache, and his expression is serious, reflecting the formal portrait style of the era.

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