In December 1887, the House of Representatives voted to reduce its membership from general electorates from 91 to 70.
In addition, three-member electorates were introduced in the four main centres.
Three people contested the poll, with Thomas Dick and Edward McGlashan returned.
James Gordon Stuart Grant was a local eccentric and a frequent candidate from 1867 to 1884.
The three candidates on the anti-centralist ticket, James Macandrew, William Larnach and Robert Stout, were all successful.
William Hutchison and David Pinkerton were incumbents who were successful, William Earnshaw was the third successful candidate (he had represented the Peninsula electorate in the previous Parliament), the previous representative Henry Fish came fourth, Hugh Gourley was fifth, with other unsuccessful candidates being James Gore, Charles Haynes, and David Nicol.