Archibald Archer M.L.A., J.P., (18 March 1820 – 6 February 1902) was a

Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...

politician, a

Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly This is a list of members of the Legislative Assembly of Queensland, the state parliament of Queensland, sorted by parliament. See also * Queensland Legislative Assembly electoral districts This is a list of current and former Electoral dis ...

, and

Treasurer A treasurer is a person responsible for the financial operations of a government, business, or other organization. Government The treasury of a country is the department responsible for the country's economy, finance and revenue. The treasure ...

of Queensland. He was one of

the Archer brothers The Archer brothers were among the earliest European settlers in Queensland, Australia. They were explorers and pastoralists. Seven sons of William Archer, a Scottish timber merchant, they spent varying amounts of time in the colony of New Sout ...

, an early Queensland pioneering family.

Personal life

Archibald Archer was born in

Fife Fife ( , ; ; ) is a council areas of Scotland, council area and lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area in Scotland. A peninsula, it is bordered by the Firth of Tay to the north, the North Sea to the east, the Firth of Forth to the s ...

, Scotland on 18 March 1820, the son of William Archer, of

Larvik Larvik () is a List of municipalities of Norway, municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. It is located in the Traditional districts of Norway, traditional district of Vestfold. The administrative centre of the municipality is the Larvik (town) ...

, Norway. At age 5, Archer went with his father to Norway and was educated in Norway. Later he spent five years in an engineering establishment in Scotland. Archer emigrated to Australia, where he arrived in 1842, but stayed only five months, subsequently spending thirteen years in the South Sea and Sandwich Islands. In the latter he was engaged on coffee and sugar plantations. Returning to Queensland in 1860, Archer began residence at Gracemere station. In 1896, Archer left Australia and died at the family's Norwegian estate, Tolderedden, Larvik, Norway on 6 February 1902 aged 81 years.Death certificate for Archibald Archer (original in Norwegian plus English translation) within Supreme Court Central District Rockhampton Ecclesiastical Files 42/1902, accessed 26 February 2013 at

Queensland State Archives The Queensland State Archives is the lead agency for public recordkeeping in Queensland, Australia. It is the custodian of the largest and most significant documentary heritage collection about Queensland. Established in 1959, Queensland Stat ...

Public life

Archer was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Queensland The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly ...

as the member for

Rockhampton Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland, Australia. In the , the population of Rockhampton was 79,293. A common nickname for Rockhampton is "Rocky", and the demonym of Rockhampton is Rockhamptonite. The Scottish- ...

from 27 July 1867 to 19 November 1869, during which he assisted with passing the Land Act of 1868. On 28 November 1878, Archer was elected again to the

as the member for the

Electoral district of Blackall Blackall was a Legislative Assembly electorate in the state of Queensland from 1873 to 1888. History Blackall was established in 1873 as a single-member constituency by the ''1872 Electoral Districts Act'' and covered the rural surrounding ar ...

which title he possessed until 23 January 1886. During this term, he was

and Secretary for Public Instruction in the first

Thomas McIlwraith Sir Thomas McIlwraith (17 May 1835 – 17 July 1900) was for many years the dominant figure of colonial politics in Queensland. He was Premier of Queensland from 1879 to 1883, again in 1888, and for a third time in 1893. In common with most po ...

Government from 5 January 1882 to 13 November 1883. On 5 May 1888, Archer was elected again to the

as the member for

(again) which he held until 4 April 1896. Archer was a strong advocate of the subdivision of Queensland. In 1892 Mr. Archer visited England in company with John Ferguson as a deputation on behalf of the

Central Queensland Territorial Separation League The Central Queensland Territorial Separation League was formed in Rockhampton in 1889 with the aim of agitating for separation of the Central Queensland region from the (then) colony of Queensland. The Separatists’ main complaints were the pe ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Archer, Archibald 1820 births 1902 deaths Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly People from Fife Treasurers of Queensland 19th-century Australian politicians