Charles Wittenoom
Encyclopedia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
, was a Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council
Western Australian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the Legislative Assembly. It sits in Parliament House in the state...
for twelve years.
Born in Geraldton
Geraldton, Western Australia
Geraldton is a city and port in Western Australia located north of Perth in the Mid West region. Geraldton has an estimated population at June 2010 of 36,958...
, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
on 6 December 1879, he was the son of squatter and station agent Sir Edward Wittenoom
Edward Wittenoom
Sir Edward Charles Wittenoom KCMG was an Australian politician, member of the Western Australian Legislative Council for thirty four years.- Early life :...
, and a nephew of Frank Wittenoom
Frank Wittenoom
Francis Frederick Burdett Wittenoom was an explorer and pastoralist in Western Australia...
, after whom the town of Wittenoom
Wittenoom, Western Australia
Wittenoom is a ghost town located 1,106 kilometres north-northeast of Perth in the Hamersley Range in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. It is the site of Australia's greatest industrial disaster....
is named. He was educated at High School (now Hale School
Hale School
Hale School is a selective, independent, Anglican day and boarding school for boys, located in Wembley Downs, a coastal suburb of Perth, Western Australia....
) in Perth
Perth, Western Australia
Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000....
, then went to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to complete his studies at Malvern College
Malvern College
Malvern College is a coeducational independent school located on a 250 acre campus near the town centre of Malvern, Worcestershire in England. Founded on 25 January 1865, until 1992, the College was a secondary school for boys aged 13 to 18...
and the Royal School of Mines
Royal School of Mines
Royal School of Mines comprises the departments of Earth Science and Engineering, and Materials at Imperial College London.- History :The Royal School of Mines was established in 1851, as the Government School of Mines and Science Applied to the Arts...
in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. On returning to Western Australia he became manager of Central and West Boulder Mines at Kalgoorlie. By 1909 he was owner of Muralgarra Station at Yalgoo
Yalgoo, Western Australia
-Further reading:* Palmer, Alex. Yalgoo Fremantle, W.A: Lap Industries. ISBN 0959058400- See also :* Yalgoo - the ecological region* Thundelarra* Shire of Yalgoo - the local government region...
. On 9 June 1909 he married Bessie Sholl, daughter of Robert Sholl; they would have one son and two daughters.
Wittenoom was widowed in October 1919. From the early 1920s he lived in Albany, Western Australia
Albany, Western Australia
Albany is a port city in the Great Southern region of Western Australia, some 418 km SE of Perth, the state capital. As of 2009, Albany's population was estimated at 33,600, making it the 6th-largest city in the state....
, where he invested in property including several hotels, and became director of WA Woollen Mills. On 17 September 1923 he married Constance Patricia Hanrahan, with whom he would have two sons and a daughter. He became active in public affairs, serving as mayor
Mayor
In many countries, a Mayor is the highest ranking officer in the municipal government of a town or a large urban city....
of Albany Municipal Council from 1923 to 1931 (with a brief break in 1926), and again from 1940 to 1952. On 22 May 1928 he was elected to the Western Australian Legislative Council
Western Australian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the Legislative Assembly. It sits in Parliament House in the state...
for the South-East Province. He would hold the seat until the election of 11 May 1940, when he was defeated by Hugh Roche. In later life he retired to Claremont
Claremont, Western Australia
Claremont is a western suburb of Perth, Western Australia on the north bank of the Swan River.-History:Prior to European settlement, the Noongar people used the area as a source of water, for fishing and for catching waterfowl. In 1830, John Butler, a settler, set up an inn at Freshwater Bay to...
, where he died on 18 September 1969. He was buried in ry.