Ernest Albert AthertonFamily history research
– Queensland Government births, deaths, marriages, and divorces. Retrieved 12 March 2016. (22 March 1879 – 29 June 1954) was a farmer and member of the

Queensland Legislative Assembly 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 h ...

Early days

Atherton was the youngest son of John Atherton (pioneer) and his wife Catherine (née Grainger). The family had settled on the extensive Emerald End cattle station and their station homestead was attacked many times by bands of

indigenous people There is no generally accepted definition of Indigenous peoples, although in the 21st century the focus has been on self-identification, cultural difference from other groups in a state, a special relationship with their traditional territ ...

.Northern Pioneer's Death
–

The Cairns Post ''The Cairns Post'' is a major News Corporation newspaper in Far North Queensland, Australia, that exclusively serves the Cairns area. It has daily coverage on local, state, national and world news, plus a wide range of sections and liftou ...

. Retrieved 12 March 2016. He was educated at

Cairns Cairns (; ) is a city in the Cairns Region, Queensland, Australia, on the tropical north east coast of Far North Queensland. In the , Cairns had a population of 153,181 people. The city was founded in 1876 and named after William Cairns, Sir W ...

State School and also received private tuition in

Port Douglas Port Douglas is a coastal town and locality in the Shire of Douglas, Queensland, Australia, approximately north of Cairns. In the , the locality of Port Douglas had a population of 3,650 people. The town's population can often double, however, ...

. When he finished his education he spent time as a butcher and

storekeeper Storekeeper (SK) is an Enlisted rank, enlisted rating in the United States Coast Guard; until 2009 it was also a United States Navy rating, the most common supply rate in U.S. Navy vs. CS (Culinary Specialist (US Navy), culinary specialist) and ...

before becoming a sugar cane and dairy farmer.

Political career

After being the first chairman of the Barron Shire Council, at the 1929 state election, Atherton contested the seat of

Chillagoe Chillagoe is a rural town and locality in the Shire of Mareeba, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Chillagoe had a population of 214 people. It was once a thriving mining town for a range of minerals, but is now reduced to a small ...

for the

Country and Progressive National Party The Country and Progressive National Party was a short-lived conservative political party in the Australian state of Queensland. Formed in 1925, it combined the state's conservative forces in a single party and held office between 1929 and 1932 u ...

and defeated

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the labour ...

sitting member, John O'Keefe.Figures of the polling
– The Sunday Mail. Retrieved 12 March 2016. He was immediately elevated to the ministry as the Secretary for Mines in the Moore Ministry but by the 1932 state election Chillagoe had been abolished. He stood for the new seat of The Tableland, but was defeated by

candidate Harry Bruce.State Government Defeated
–

Townsville Bulletin The ''Townsville Bulletin'' is a daily newspaper published in Townsville, Queensland, Australia, formerly known as the ''Townsville Daily Bulletin''. It is the only daily paper that serves the northern Queensland region. The paper has a prin ...

. Retrieved 12 March 2016.

Personal life

On 10 April 1912, Atherton married Honoria Christiana Svendsen (died 1975) and together had two sons and one daughter. Honoria went on to be President of Queensland CWA and earned herself an

OBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding valuable service in a wide range of useful activities. It comprises five classes of awards across both civil and military divisions, the most senior two o ...

. Atherton died in June 1954 and was buried in the Atherton family cemetery at Emerald End.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Atherton, Ernest Albert Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly 1879 births 1954 deaths