William Robert Lawrence (28 July 1906 – 13 January 2004) was an Australia

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. Born in Horsham, Victoria

Horsham, Victoria

Horsham is the largest city by population and regional centre of the Wimmera region of Victoria, Australia and is approximately north-west of Melbourne via the Western Highway. At the 2006 census, Horsham had a population of 14,125. Horsham is in the federal Division of Mallee...

, he attended state schools and then the University of Melbourne

University of Melbourne

The University of Melbourne is a public university located in Melbourne, Victoria. Founded in 1853, it is the second oldest university in Australia and the oldest in Victoria...

 before returning to Horsham as a dentist; he also sat on Horsham City Council

City of Horsham

The City of Horsham was a Local Government Area located about west-northwest of Melbourne, the state capital of Victoria, Australia. The city covered an area of , and existed from 1882 until 1994.-History:...

. In 1949, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives

Australian House of Representatives

The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....

 as the Liberal

Liberal Party of Australia

The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...

 member for Wimmera

Division of Wimmera

The Division of Wimmera was an Australian Electoral Division in the state of Victoria. It was named after the Wimmera region in which it was located. It originally encompassed the towns of Mildura, Swan Hill and Warracknabeal, but by the time it was abolished in 1977, it had drifted south and grown...

. He held the seat until 1958, when he was defeated by the Country Party

National Party of Australia

The National Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Traditionally representing graziers, farmers and rural voters generally, it began as the The Country Party, but adopted the name The National Country Party in 1975, changed to The National Party of Australia in 1982. The party is...

candidate. Lawrence died in 2004.