Waterhouse, George Marsden (1824-1906), served as premier both of South Australia and, later, of New Zealand. Marsden was premier, or prime minister, of the British colony of South Australia from 1861 to 1863 and of New Zealand, then also a British colony, in 1872 and 1873. He won recognition as a skillful politician in both colonies.
Early life and family.
Waterhouse was born on April 6, 1824, in Penzance, England. He attended Kingswood School, a Wesleyan school near Bristol (but now located in Bath) before immigrating with his family to Hobart Town in the British colony of Van Diemen’s Land (now Hobart, Tasmania), in 1839. In 1843, Waterhouse moved to Adelaide in South Australia and became a merchant in partnership with his brother. He retired from the successful business at the age of 29. On May 5, 1848, Waterhouse married Lydia Giles (1827-1910). She was the daughter of William Giles, an official of the South Australian Company, an organization that promoted settlement in the colony. The couple adopted two daughters. 
Political career in Australia.
In 1851, Waterhouse was elected to South Australia’s Legislative Council—then a partly appointed, partly elected body that governed the colony. He resigned in 1854 and traveled to England. In 1857, he was elected to South Australia’s first Legislative Assembly. Waterhouse was again elected to South Australia’s Legislative Council in 1860. He was active in colonial economic affairs, supporting more free trade between the colonies that made up Australia and uniform tariffs for all of them.
Waterhouse served in the ministry of South Australian Premier Thomas Reynolds from May 1860 to February 1861. He then became premier on Oct. 8, 1861. Waterhouse formed a second ministry nine days later, which lasted until July 4, 1863, when it collapsed after charges of financial irregularities. Waterhouse retired from Australian politics in 1864. For several years, he divided his time between living in England and South Australia.
Political career in New Zealand.
In January 1869, Waterhouse immigrated to New Zealand, purchasing a large sheep station (ranch) in Wairarapa in the North Island. In 1870, he became a member of the New Zealand Legislative Council, the appointed upper house of the colonial Parliament, and served as its leader until the end of the session. He served briefly in the government of Prime Minister William Fox in 1871. Although he had only served in Parliament for two years and had never held a Cabinet post, he became prime minister on Oct. 11, 1872. He resigned on March 3, 1873. Waterhouse remained active in Parliament until the late 1880’s, but he suffered from poor health and eventually retired to England in 1889. He died at Torquay on Aug. 6, 1906.
