Sir Albert Eli Lind (21 February 1878 – 26 June 1964) was an Australian politician.

Early life

Lind was born in 1878 in East Charlton, Victoria, the son of Oliver Nicholas Lind, a farmer from Denmark, and his Welsh wife Mary Ann Clay. In 1882, drought forced the family to move to East Gippsland where Lind was educated at Lucknow, and then to Bairnsdale in 1884 where he attended Bairnsdale state school. By the age of 12, he was a builder's apprentice and worked in several trades. In 1904, then just married, Lind selected a property at Mount Taylor, where he established a dairy farm with his brother Ernie.J. D. Adams
'Lind, Sir Albert Eli (1878–1964)'
''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', National Centre of Biography, Australian National University,, accessed 9 July 2013.

Political career

Lind entered politics as a councillor for the

Shire of Bairnsdale The Shire of Bairnsdale was a local government area about east of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The shire covered an area of , and existed from 1867 until 1994. For its first one hundred years it governed both Bairnsdale ...

from 1914 to 1925. In October 1920, he was elected to the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the states and territories of Australia, state lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the state upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament H ...

for the seat of

Gippsland East The electoral district of Gippsland East is an electoral district of the Victorian Legislative Assembly. It covers most of eastern Victoria and includes the towns of Bairnsdale Bairnsdale (locally ) (Gunai language, Ganai: ''Wy-yung'') is ...

for the Victorian Farmers' Union (VFU).Lind, Sir Albert Eli
''Re-member'', Parliament of Victoria. On 2 April, Lind was made Minister of

Forests A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological functio ...

, Minister of Public Instruction,

President of the Board of Land and Works The Board of Land and Works was a government authority in Victoria, Australia. It was established by an act of parliament in 1857, with the aim of consolidating and coordinating the administration of public lands and public works. Consequently, ...

and Commissioner of Crown Lands and Survey in Albert Dunstan's cabinet.Gazette 59
''Victoria Government Gazette'', Government of Victoria, 2 April 1935. On 13 October 1937, Lind was voted deputy leader of the United Country Party in an unexpected ballot at the party's pre-sessional meeting, and therefore became

Deputy Premier of Victoria The deputy premier of Victoria is the second-most senior officer in the Government of Victoria. The deputy premier position was created in May 1932, with Robert Menzies being the first person to hold the position. The deputy premier is appointe ...

. When John McDonald won government in 1950, Lind resumed his portfolios of lands and

forests A forest is an ecosystem characterized by a dense community of trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological functio ...

, as well as the additional portfolio of soldier settlement. Lind was knighted in the 1951 King's Birthday honours for his service in the Victorian Legislative Assembly.LIND, Albert Eli
''It's an Honour'', 7 June 1951.

Family

Lind married Flora Catherine Arthur on 31 August 1904 at Bairnsdale. They had four sons and five daughters. Lind was the uncle of Alan Lind, who was also a Member of the Legislative Assembly for the Labor Party, representing the districts of

Mildura Mildura ( ) is a regional city in north-west Victoria, Australia. Located on the Victorian side of the Murray River, Mildura had a population of 34,565 at the 2021 census. When nearby Wentworth, Irymple, Nichols Point, Merbein and Red ...

(1952–1955) and Dandenong (1969–1979).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lind, Alfred 1878 births 1964 deaths Deputy premiers of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Presidents of the Board of Land and Works National Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Australian Knights Bachelor Australian pastoralists Australian people of Danish descent Australian people of Welsh descent People from Charlton, Victoria Ministers for forests (Victoria) Ministers for education (Victoria) Commissioners of crown lands and survey (Victoria)