Sir John Forrest (1847-1918) James Mackinnon Fowler (1863-1940)

Member for Swan () 1901-1918 Member for (Western Australia) 1901-1922

orn at Preston Point, Western Australia, Forrest was invited to join the ames Fowler was born in Strathaven, A freelance journalist, Fowler published BJohn Forrest was a noted explorer. Forrest in January 1901 and at the first federal JScotland and migrated to Australia in 1891. material critical of W.M. Hughes and of qualified as a surveyor in 1865 and in 1869 election in March 1901 was returned Upon his arrival in Australia, Fowler spent the protectionist policies of the government, undertook the first of many successful unopposed to represent the federal seat time prospecting in Victoria, and helped to which he felt disadvantaged Western explorative expeditions in Western Australia. of Swan in the House of Representatives. form the Victorian Socialist League. He settled Australia. Following his retirement he lived Forrest was given a seat in the Western He served as Postmaster-General, Minister in Perth in 1898, where he was active in the in Melbourne, where he consolidated a large Australian Legislative Council in 1883 as for Defence and Minister for Home Affairs Western Australian Federal League. personal library and wrote newspaper a consequence of his appointment as and was Treasurer in five ministries. Strongly articles, novels and short stories. Commissioner of Crown Lands. On the critical of the Labor Party, Forrest rallied Fowler was elected to the House of implementation of a new Constitution for the anti-socialist element in Parliament to Representatives for the seat of Perth as a Western Australia in 1890, he was elected achieve the Fusion Government of 1909, and Freetrader in the first federal election in 1901 to the Legislative Assembly as the member laid the foundations for the formation of the and subsequently joined the Labor Party. for Bunbury and became leader of the Liberal Party. Forrest resigned from the Fowler left the Party after the fall of the government. He was unchallenged as ministry owing to ill health in 1918 and set Fisher ministry in 1909, and joined the Premier for ten years. sail aboard a troopship to the United Kingdom Liberals. He was Chairman of Committees for medical treatment. He died while the ship in the House of Representatives 1913-14. Forrest was a consistent supporter of was anchored off the coast of Sierra Leone. He lost party endorsement and was defeated federation and attended the federal at the election in 1922. conventions of 1891 and 1897-98, where In 1891 Forrest become the first Australian he was vigilant in ensuring that the interests to be appointed Knight Commander of the of Western Australia should not suffer in a St Michael and St George (KCMG) and in 1918 federal agreement. the first Australian to be granted a peerage. His last few months were spent as First Baron Forrest of Bunbury.

The electorate of Swan was named after a local geographic feature (Swan River, which was The electorate of Perth was named after its locality. The settlement of Perth was named after discovered and named by the Dutch explorer, Willem de Vlamingh in 1697, after the famous Perth, Scotland. black swans of the area).