Thomas Icely was an early colonial New South Wales

New South Wales

New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...

 landholder and stockbreeder. As a nominee Legislative Councillor from 1843 to the establishment of responsible government in 1856, he was a consistent supporter of the Governor. He served a second term as a life appointee to the Legislative Council from 1864. The beneficiary of large land grants to which he added purchased land holdings, his main holding from 1831 was Coombing Park

Coombing Park

Coombing Park is a farming property situated in western New South Wales just off the Mid Western Highway about 5 km west of Carcoar, 260 km west of Sydney and 54 km south-west of Bathurst. The property is of considerable note because of its relationship with convicts, bushrangers and the Cobb & Co...

. To support this holding, the village of Mandurama was established in 1876.

His name is associated with the introduction of Shorthorn

Shorthorn

The Shorthorn breed of cattle originated in the North East of England in the late 18th century. The breed was developed as dual purpose, suitable for both dairy and beef production; however there were always certain blood lines within the breed which emphasised one quality or the other...

 stock into Australia.

He was the first lessee of Elizabeth Farm to which he retired with his family in 1869 and where he died on 13 February 1874.