Frank Joseph Scott Wise AO (30 May 1897 – 29 June 1986) was a Labor Party politician who was the 16th

Premier of Western Australia The premier of Western Australia is the head of government of the state of Western Australia. The role of premier at a state level is similar to the role of the prime minister of Australia at a federal level. The premier leads the executive bra ...

. He took office on 31 July 1945 in the closing stages of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, following the resignation of his predecessor due to ill health. He lost the following election two years later to the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

after Labor had held office for fourteen years previously. Wise was a farmer for several years in Queensland before working in the Department of Agriculture in that state. He later moved to

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

as a technical adviser in the

Western Australian Department of Agriculture The Department of Primary Industries and Regional Development (DPIRD) is a Western Australian government department responsible for regulating and advancing agricultural and food industries, fisheries and regional development within the state. I ...

and in 1928 was commissioned to report and advise on tropical agriculture in the

Northern Territory The Northern Territory (commonly abbreviated as NT; formally the Northern Territory of Australia) is an Australian territory in the central and central northern regions of Australia. The Northern Territory shares its borders with Western Aust ...

and the North West of Western Australia. In the 1933 state election which saw future Premiers Albert Hawke and

John Tonkin John Trezise Tonkin AC (2 February 1902 – 20 October 1995), popularly known as "Honest John", was an Australian politician. A member of the Labor Party, he served as a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly for a record 44 ...

also win seats, Wise successfully contested the seat of Gascoyne (now merged into Murchison-Eyre) in the state's lower house for the Labor Party. In 1936 he moved to the front bench as Minister for Agriculture and the North-West. For reasons of ill health,

John Willcock John Collings Willcock (9 August 1879 – 7 June 1956) was the 15th Premier of Western Australia, serving from 1936 until 1945. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party. Early life John Willcock was born at Frogmoor (now Frogmore), New So ...

resigned his premiership on 31 July 1945 and Wise was elected into the position. Wise held the position for only two years until the 1947 election when his party lost to the Liberals headed by Sir

Ross McLarty Sir Duncan Ross McLarty, (17 March 1891 – 22 December 1962) was an Australian politician and the 17th Premier of Western Australia. Early life McLarty was born in Pinjarra, Western Australia, the youngest of seven children of Edward McLarty ...

. He was Leader of the Opposition for the next four years before taking up the position of

Administrator of the Northern Territory The Administrator of the Northern Territory is an official appointed by the Governor-General of Australia to represent the government of the Commonwealth in the Northern Territory, Australia. They perform functions similar to those of a state gov ...

and President of the

Northern Territory Legislative Council The Northern Territory Legislative Council was the partly elected governing body of the Northern Territory of Australia from 1947 until its replacement by the fully elected Northern Territory Legislative Assembly in 1974. Prior to 1947, there ha ...

(now replaced with the

unicameral Unicameralism (from ''uni''- "one" + Latin ''camera'' "chamber") is a type of legislature, which consists of one house or assembly, that legislates and votes as one. Unicameral legislatures exist when there is no widely perceived need for multi ...

Northern Territory Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory is the unicameral legislature of the Northern Territory of Australia. The Legislative Assembly has 25 members, each elected in single-member electorates for four-year terms. The voting method f ...

). In 1942, botanist Charles Gardner named the Australian shrub '' Acacia wiseana'' in his honour. In the 1979

Australia Day Australia Day is the official national day of Australia. Observed annually on 26 January, it marks the 1788 landing of the First Fleet at Sydney Cove and raising of the Union Flag by Arthur Phillip following days of exploration of Port ...

honours list, he was appointed an Officer of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Gov ...

for his services to politics.It's an Honour
/ref>

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wise, Frank 1897 births 1986 deaths Administrators of the Northern Territory Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Western Australia Deputy Premiers of Western Australia Leaders of the Opposition in Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council Members of the Northern Territory Legislative Council Officers of the Order of Australia People from Ipswich, Queensland Premiers of Western Australia Treasurers of Western Australia 20th-century Australian politicians