This book covers the period 1901-1929, the period in which the
Parliament operated from Melbourne, and present short articles on
Australia's senators during the first twenty nine years of the Federal
Parliament.
The Dictionary provides a window on the
colonial and post-colonial societies in which these ninety nine
senators and their three clerks lived and worked. It explains how
miners, merchants, constitutionalists, soldiers, printers, trade
unionists, adventurers and pastoralists became senators, and how, in an
essentially egalitarian society, they melded together as Australia's
first federal parliamentarians.
An Australians celebrate the
centenary of Federation, 'The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian
Senate' tells of the senators' work as legislators during a period when
Australia was making a unique contribution to democracy itself, and
reveals the excitement felt by those of all political persuasions as
they shaped the beginnings of an Australian nation.
The
contribution of these senators to Australia public life was immense.
Some, such as the federationists, John Downer, Thomas Playford, William
Trenwith, Simon Fraser, Josiah Symon and William Zeal, retain some
elements of notoriety. Others, such as the South Australian farmer,
William Russell, or Charles Montague Graham, a tailor on the Western
Australian goldfields, were soon forgotten, even in their own time.
'The
Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate' reveal to a new
generation the influence and the significance of these early federal
parliamentarians.
Contents:
Acknowledgements
Advisory Board
Contributors
Introduction
New South Wales Senators
Queensland Senators
South Australian Senators
Tasmanian Senators
Victorian Senators
Western Australian Senators
Clerks of the Senate
Appendix 1. Elections and Parliaments
Appendix 2. Presidents of the Senate
Appendix 3. Chairmen of Committees in the Senate
Appendix 4. Leaders of the Government in the Senate
Appendix 5. Leaders of the Opposition in the Senate
Appendix 6. Ministerial Representation in the Senate and the House of Representatives
Abbreviations
Notes
Select References
Index
Related Products:
The Biographical Dictionary of the Australian Senate Volume 2: 1929-1962
