Sir William Wellington Cairns
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| Governor of Trinidad | |
| In office 2 May 1874 – 27 May 1874 | |
| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Preceded by | James Robert Longden |
| Succeeded by | Henry Turner Irving |
| 4th Governor of Queensland | |
| In office 23 January 1875 – 14 March 1877 | |
| Monarch | Queen Victoria |
| Preceded by | George Phipps, 2nd Marquess of Normanby |
| Succeeded by | Sir Arthur Edward Kennedy |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1828-03-03)3 March 1828 County Down, Ireland, UK |
| Died | 9 July 1888(1888-07-09) (aged 60) London, England, UK |
| Nationality |  British |
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Sir William Wellington Cairns, KCMG (3 March 1828 - 9 June 1888) was a British colonial administrator. He was the Governor of Queensland and the Governor of Trinidad.
Cairns was born in Belfast, Ireland on 3 March 1828 (as indicated on his grave stone). His parents were William Cairns, a property owner at Cultra, County Down and was a captain in the 14th Regiment, and his second marriage Matilda Beggs, daughter of Francis Beggs of the Grange, Malahide.[1]
He served in various senior colonial civil service posts in the British Empire including Trinidad,[2][3] moving due to health issues,[4] before being appointed Governor of Queensland in January 1875. He held the post for two years before becoming the Administrator of South Australia in 1877.[5] Cairns was given a CMG in 1874, followed by a knighthood in 1877.[6]
Later reflections of his contributions to colonial public life were not considered highly:
He subsequently returned to England where he died in London on 7 July 1888,[1][8][9] unmarried.[10] He is buried in a modest grave against the east wall of Brompton Cemetery near the north-east corner with Anna Maria Cairns, his sister.[11]
The city of CairnsinQueensland was named after him in 1876.[12][13][14]
| Government offices | ||
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| Preceded by | Lieutenant Governor of Malacca 1867 – 1869 |
Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Lieutenant Governor of Saint Christopher 1869 – 1870 |
Succeeded by asPresident of Saint Christopher |
| Preceded by | Lieutenant Governor of British Honduras 1870 – 1874 |
Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Trinidad 1874 |
Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Governor of Queensland 1875 – 1877 |
Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Administrator of South Australia 1877 |
Succeeded by |
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