Charles Edward Frazer (2 January 1880 – 25 November 1913) was an Australian politician. He served in the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

from 1903 until his death from pneumonia in 1913, aged 33. He was

Postmaster-General A Postmaster General, in Anglosphere countries, is the chief executive officer of the postal service of that country, a ministerial office responsible for overseeing all other postmasters. History The practice of having a government officia ...

in the second Fisher Ministry.

Early life

Frazer was born on 2 January 1880 at Pelluebla, a rural locality south of

Yarrawonga, Victoria Yarrawonga is a town in the Shire of Moira local government area in the Australian state of Victoria. In the 2021 census, Yarrawonga had a population of 8,661 people. Geography The town is located approximately north-east of the state ca ...

. He was named after "Bonnie Prince Charlie",

Charles Edward Stuart Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (31 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, making him the grandson of James VII and II, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, ...

. He was the youngest of nine children born to Susannah Atkinson and James Frazer. He had three older brothers and four older sisters, with another sister dying as an infant. His mother was born in Melbourne, while his father was born in

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, Scotland, and arrived in Australia in 1852 during the

Victorian gold rush The Victorian gold rush was a period in the history of Victoria, Australia, approximately between 1851 and the late 1860s. It led to a period of extreme prosperity for the Australian colony and an influx of population growth and financial capi ...

. Frazer grew up on his father's property of , where the family lived in

wattle and daub Wattle and daub is a composite material, composite building method in which a woven lattice of wooden strips called "wattle (construction), wattle" is "daubed" with a sticky material usually made of some combination of wet soil, clay, sand, and ...

huts. He received his only formal education at the Pelluebla South State School, a

one-room school One-room schoolhouses, or One-room schools, have been commonplace throughout rural portions of various countries, including Prussia, Norway, Sweden, the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal, and Spa ...

that had become overcrowded due to the large size of families in the area. At one stage his father received a fine for keeping the children home from school to work on the farm. The property was subjected to several years of drought and locusts in the early 1890s, and the Frazers also experienced financial difficulties caused by the banking crisis of 1893. By 1895, the family was preparing to move to Mulwala, New South Wales, located opposite Yarrawonga on the other side of the

Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray; Ngarrindjeri language, Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta language, Yorta Yorta: ''Dhungala'' or ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is List of rivers of Australia, Aust ...

. Frazer was unwilling to move with them, having come to dislike the monotony of farm work. He made up his mind to move across the country to

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

, where gold had been found two years earlier; as a child he had been fascinated by his father's recollections of the 1850s gold rush. He arrived in

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia located at the mouth of the Swan River (Western Australia), Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australi ...

a few months after his 15th birthday, travelling via

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

. After arriving in Western Australia, Frazer did not travel on directly to the goldfields but instead took up an apprenticeship with the

Western Australian Government Railways Western Australian Government Railways (WAGR) was the state owned operator of railways in the state of Western Australia between October 1890 and June 2003. Owned by the state government, it was renamed a number of times to reflect extra respon ...

at the

Fremantle Railway Workshops Fremantle Railway Workshops were the main workshops for the Western Australian Government Railways from 1886 until 1904 when the workshops were moved to Midland Junction where the Midland Railway Workshops operated until 1994. The workshops w ...

. He joined the Locomotive Drivers', Firemen's and Cleaners' Union, and after starting in the engine sheds progressed rapidly through the ranks, becoming a

fireman A firefighter (or fire fighter or fireman) is a first responder trained in specific emergency response such as firefighting, primarily to control and extinguish fires and respond to emergencies such as hazardous material incidents, medical in ...

after only a few months. He subsequently worked on the extension of the

Eastern Goldfields Railway The Eastern Goldfields Railway, was built in the 1890s by the Western Australian Government Railways to connect Perth with the Eastern Goldfields at Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie. It is a part of the interstate standard gauge railway between Per ...

from

Southern Cross CRUX is a lightweight x86-64 Linux distribution targeted at experienced Linux users and delivered by a tar.gz-based package system with BSD-style initscripts. It is not based on any other Linux distribution. It also utilizes a ports system to ...

Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie-Boulder (or just Kalgoorlie) is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder as the surroundi ...

. Frazer settled in Kalgoorlie's twin town

Boulder In geology, a boulder (or rarely bowlder) is a rock fragment with size greater than in diameter. Smaller pieces are called cobbles and pebbles. While a boulder may be small enough to move or roll manually, others are extremely massive. In ...

after the line was completed. He qualified as a locomotive

engine driver A train driver is a person who operates a train, railcar, or other rail transport vehicle. The driver is in charge of and is responsible for the mechanical operation of the train, train speed, and all of the train handling (also known as bra ...

in 1899, aged 19, and joined the Certified Engine Drivers' Union. He subsequently worked at the Hannan's Star and Boulder Perseverance mines, and occasionally as a driver on the Kalgoorlie–Boulder loop line. He invested his earnings in part-ownership of a Boulder hotel. Frazer was elected as president of his branch of his union in 1902 and secretary of the Goldfields Trades and Labor Council in 1903. In August 1904 he married Mary Kinnane.

Municipal politics

In November 1902, Frazer was elected to Kalgoorlie Municipal Council.

Federal politics

Electoral record

In September 1903, Frazer won ALP

preselection Preselection is the process by which a candidate is selected, usually by a political party, to contest an election for political office. It is also referred to as candidate selection. It is a fundamental function of political parties. The presel ...

for the

Division of Kalgoorlie The Division of Kalgoorlie was an Electorates of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in the States and territories of Australia, state of Western Australia, named after the city of Kalgoorlie. The division wa ...

, defeating two other candidates. The incumbent member John Kirwan was a

Free Trader Free Trader was a political label used in the United Kingdom by several candidates in the 1906 general election and January 1910 general election. Many were Conservative Party or Liberal Unionist politicians opposed to Joseph Chamberlain's campai ...

sympathetic to the labour movement. He had won a large majority at the inaugural 1901 election and had the support of the ''

Kalgoorlie Miner ''The Kalgoorlie Miner'' (commonly known as ''The Miner'') is a daily newspaper circulating in the City of Kalgoorlie–Boulder and the Goldfields–Esperance region, in Western Australia. It is published Monday to Saturday by Hocking & Co. ...

'' and ''

Western Argus The ''Western Argus'' was a newspaper published in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Nor ...

''. Kirwan's popularity may have contributed to the smaller number of candidates for ALP preselection, as he was widely expected to win re-election. According to his friend

Richard Crouch Richard Armstrong Crouch (19 June 1868 – 7 April 1949) was an Australian politician. His two periods as a member of the House of Representatives (1901–1910, 1929–1931) were separated by the First World War, during which he became an anti- ...

, Frazer's campaign was bankrolled with his poker winnings, which included a win of £1,000 in a single night (). The Kalgoorlie electorate occupied the south-eastern portion of Western Australia, with most of its population concentrated in Kalgoorlie and Boulder. In the lead-up to the federal election scheduled for 16 December, he began his campaign in the coastal hamlet of Hopetoun, subsequently travelling by ship to Esperance and then riding north to

Norseman The Norsemen (or Northmen) were a cultural group in the Early Middle Ages, originating among speakers of Old Norse in Scandinavia. During the late eighth century, Scandinavians embarked on a large-scale expansion in all directions, giving ris ...

by bicycle, a five-day journey. His official policy speech was made in Kalgoorlie on 7 November, and included support for White Australia, protectionism,

compulsory arbitration Compulsory arbitration is arbitration of labor disputes which laws of some communities force the two sides, labor and management, to undergo. These laws mostly apply when the possibility of a strike seriously affects the public interest. Some labor ...

, old-age pensions, and

direct taxation Although the actual definitions vary between jurisdictions, in general, a direct tax is a tax imposed upon a person or property as distinct from a tax imposed upon a transaction, which is described as an indirect tax. There is a distinction betwee ...

of the wealthy. Kirwan's campaign suffered from a lack of organisation, which contrasted with the pre-existing ALP and union branches that lent their support to Frazer. At the election, the ALP recorded a large swing throughout Western Australia, winning all three

Senate A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

seats and four out of five seats in the

. Frazer defeated Kirwan by nearly 3,000 votes, polling almost two-thirds of the total. After his initial success, Frazer was re-elected with an increased majority at each subsequent election. At the 1906 election he was opposed by William Burton, the mayor of Esperance, on behalf of

John Forrest Sir John Forrest (22 August 1847 – 2 SeptemberSome sources give the date as 3 September 1918 1918) was an Australian explorer and politician. He was the first premier of Western Australia (1890–1901) and a long-serving cabinet minister in ...

's newly formed

Western Australian Party The Western Australian Party (or West Australian Party; WAP) was a short-lived Australian political party that operated in 1906. It was intended as a liberal party to protect the rights of Western Australians and to oppose the increasingly succ ...

. This had been established as an attempt to harness regionalist and secessionist sentiment to provide a unified organisation behind anti-Labor candidates in Western Australia. However, Burton "swiftly repudiated the party label and spoke in favour of radical policies at meetings which, as he had no organisation, hardly anybody attended". Frazer won a majority of over 5,000 votes and 79 percent of the overall vote, the largest proportion of any candidate nationwide. His margin at the 1910 election increased to over 8,000 votes and 81 percent of the total, again making Kalgoorlie one of the safest seats in the country. His

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

opponent John Thornett's first campaign meeting was infiltrated by Frazer supporters and turned violent. Thornett was assaulted and hospitalised for several days, after which he withdrew from campaigning. According to , "Frazer and the Labor Party had become so popular on the goldfields that it was dangerous to oppose them". In a redistribution prior to the 1913 election, population decline on the

Eastern Goldfields The Eastern Goldfields is part of the Western Australian Goldfields in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia, covering the present and former gold-mining area east of Perth. Extent and name origin The region encompasses the to ...

led to the Coolgardie electorate being abolished and split between Kalgoorlie and the new seat of Dampier. The incumbent ALP member for Coolgardie,

Hugh Mahon Hugh Mahon (6 January 1857 – 28 August 1931) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and held ministerial office in the party's earliest governments. He served terms as Postmaster-General (1904), Mini ...

, was defeated in Dampier, but Frazer retained the enlarged Kalgoorlie constituency unopposed.

Backbencher

In parliament, he studied law in order to improve his leadership skills, campaigned successfully for the Labor parliamentary caucus to select the ministry when in office and for Labor to stop supporting

Protectionist Party The Protectionist Party, also known as the Protectionist Liberal Party or Liberal Protectionist Party, was an Politics of Australia, Australian political party, formally organised from 1887 until 1909, with policies centred on protectionism. T ...

governments. Following Labor's success at the 1910 election, he served as honorary minister in the Second Fisher Ministry. In 1911, he acted as

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 ...

for several months while Fisher attended the 1911 Imperial Conference and

coronation of George V The coronation of the British monarch, coronation of George V and his wife, Mary of Teck, Mary, as King of the United Kingdom, king and List of British royal consorts, queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdo ...

Frontbencher

In October 1911 he was appointed

. Frazer worked closely with

Douglas Mawson Sir Douglas Mawson (5 May 1882 – 14 October 1958) was a British-born Australian geologist, Antarctic explorer, and academic. Along with Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Sir Ernest Shackleton, he was a key expedition leader during ...

to assist in the success of the

Australasian Antarctic Expedition The Australasian Antarctic Expedition was a 1911–1914 expedition headed by Douglas Mawson that explored the largely uncharted Antarctic coast due south of Australia. Mawson had been inspired to lead his own venture by his experiences on Ernest ...

. Mawson needed the support of the department in respect of postal mail from

Cape Denison Cape Denison is a rocky point at the head of Commonwealth Bay in George V Land, Antarctica. It was discovered in 1912 by the Australasian Antarctic Expedition (1911–14) under Douglas Mawson, who named it for Sir Hugh Denison of Sydney, a patro ...

and

Macquarie Island Macquarie Island is a subantarctic island in the south-western Pacific Ocean, about halfway between New Zealand and Antarctica. It has been governed as a part of Tasmania, Australia, since 1880. It became a Protected areas of Tasmania, Tasmania ...

. The expedition was the first to make provision for wireless telegraphy but the range was considered likely to fall short of the Australian mainland and Mawson sought and obtained the moving forward of the establishment of the Hobart wireless station (Callsign: POH, then VIH) to ensure the communications link. He was a strong supporter for a uniform stamp for all of Australia, which was still using the old colonial (now state) issues. His first issue, now known to philatelists as the Kangaroo and Map series, was designed by

Blamire Young William Blamire Young (9 August 1862 – 14 January 1935), commonly known as Blamire Young, was an English-Australian artist and art critic. He painted primarily in watercolour. Biography Early life Young was born at Londesborough, Yorkshire ...

and issued in 1913

Illness and death

Beginning in 1911, Frazer suffered from frequent bouts of ill health. He caught influenza while in

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

in April 1913, and while campaigning a few weeks later suffered a relapse which developed into

pneumonia Pneumonia is an Inflammation, inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as Pulmonary alveolus, alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of Cough#Classification, productive or dry cough, ches ...

. He was confined to hospital in Leonora for a week, taking another three weeks to fully recover. Frazer spent the day at

Flemington Racecourse Flemington Racecourse is a major horse racing venue located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. It is most notable for hosting the Melbourne Cup, which is the world's richest handicap and the world's richest 3200-metre horse race. The race ...

on 22 November and awoke the following morning with what he believed was a slight cold. He was subsequently examined by a doctor and found to be suffering from severe pneumonia of the left lung. He was taken to a private clinic where he died on the morning of 25 November, aged 33. He was granted a

state funeral A state funeral is a public funeral ceremony, observing the strict rules of protocol, held to honour people of national significance. State funerals usually include much pomp and ceremony as well as religious overtones and distinctive elements o ...

and buried beside his mother at

Melbourne General Cemetery The Melbourne General Cemetery is a large (43 hectare) necropolis located north of the city of Melbourne in the suburb of Carlton North. The cemetery is notably the resting place of five Prime Ministers of Australia, more than any other ...

Andrew Fisher Andrew Fisher (29 August 186222 October 1928) was an Australian politician and trade unionist who served as the fifth prime minister of Australia from 1908 to 1909, 1910 to 1913 and 1914 to 1915. He held office as the leader of the Australian ...

George Pearce Sir George Foster Pearce KCVO (14 January 1870 – 24 June 1952) was an Australian politician who served as a Senator for Western Australia from 1901 to 1938. He began his career in the Labor Party but later joined the National Labor Party, ...

, Josiah Thomas,

Joseph Cook Sir Joseph Cook (7 December 1860 – 30 July 1947) was an Australian politician and trade unionist who served as the sixth Prime Minister of Australia, prime minister of Australia from 1913 to 1914. He held office as the leader of the Fusion L ...

, and

Agar Wynne Agar Wynne (15 July 185012 May 1934) was an Australian lawyer and politician. He began his career in the Victorian Legislative Council and served two terms as Solicitor-General of Victoria. In 1906, he transferred to the federal Australian Hous ...

served as pall-bearers.