John Herbert Cooke (3 August 1867 – 30 July 1943) was an Australian politician, variably referred to as "J. Herbert Cooke" or "J. H. Cooke".
History
He was born at Payneham, South Australia, the third son of Ebenezer Cooke (ca.1832 – 7 May 1907), Commissioner of Audit for South Australian, of "Richmond House", South Terrace, Adelaide and his second wife Rosa, née Phillipps (ca.1845 – 9 July 1941). He was educated at Frederick Caterer's Glenelg Grammar School, Norwood Commercial College and St. Peter's College, where he was Science Prizeman in 1883. He was employed at the
Islington Railway Workshops
The Islington Railway Workshops are railway workshops in the northern suburbs of Adelaide, South Australia. They were the chief railway workshops of the South Australian Railways, and are still in operation today.Division of South Australia at the 1901 federal election as a
Free Trade Party
The Free Trade Party (FTP), officially known as the Free Trade and Liberal Association and also referred to as the Revenue Tariff Party in some states, was an Australian political party. It was formally organised in 1887 in New South Wales, in ...
candidate.
In South Australia, he was a councillor (Parkside ward) 1900–1904 and first mayor of the newly proclaimed City of Unley 1905–1907 (Mrs. Cooke laid the foundation stone of the new Town Hall in March 1907) then an alderman 1908–1914. He won the Central No. 2 seat on the
Legislative Council
A legislative council is the legislature, or one of the legislative chambers, of a nation, colony, or subnational division such as a province or state. It was commonly used to label unicameral or upper house legislative bodies in the Brit ...
in 1915 and remained an energetic member until 1933. In 1933, he lost preselection to Hermann Homburg and Collier Cudmore, and ran for Central No. 1 district as an independent. Though he performed creditably in a strong Labor district, he was unsuccessful. Unusually, he was permitted to continue using the honorific "Hon." after leaving parliament, on account of his long and meritorious service.
Other interests
He was a director of the Cowells Patent Lock Company and the Bruer Pianoforte Company amongst others, and invested in startup companies of local inventors. He was a leading Freemason, president of the Soldiers' Home League, the School of Arts and Crafts and the Myrtle Bank Home and prominent in many other associations. His widow and daughter presented the
Royal Geographical Society
The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...
with a brass surveyor's level, made by Troughton & Simms, and reputedly used by
Colonel William Light
William Light (27 April 1786 – 6 October 1839) was a British military officer and colonial administrator. He was the first Surveyor-General of the new British Province of South Australia, known for choosing the site of the colony's capi ...
.
Family
John Herbert Cooke married Harriet Williams on 15 December 1896. They had one daughter Doris and lived at 174 Cross Road, Malvern.