Ernest James
Ernest James | |
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Member of the Legislative Council | |
In office 1951–1959 | |
Succeeded by | |
Constituency | Papua |
Personal details | |
Born | 1 November 1893 London, United Kingdom |
Died | December 1963 Brisbane, Australia |
Ernest Alfred James (1 November 1893 – December 1963) was an accountant, newspaper proprietor and politician in the Territory of Papua New Guinea. He served as a member of the Legislative Council between 1951 and 1959.
Biography[]
James was born in London,[1] where he studied to become an accountant. After earning his certification, he joined the Treasury of the Territory of Papua in 1915,[2] also becoming a special constable.[3] He married Vera Bussell in 1919, with whom he had a daughter.[2] In 1924 he left the civil service to set up his own accountancy practice.[2] In the same year he took over The Papua Courier newspaper, becoming its editor.[3] In 1925 he was amongst the founders of the Port Moresby Chamber of Commerce, serving as its Honorary Secretary.[3]
The European population of the territory was evacuated in December 1941 and January 1942. When they returned in 1945, the printing press had been destroyed and the newspaper was discontinued.[2] After returning, he served for two years as the Deputy Controller of the War Damage Commission.[2]
Having agitated for elected representation in the Courier since the 1920s,[3] James contested the first elections to the Legislative Council in 1951, winning the Papua seat. The following year he became Chairman of Port Moresby Town Advisory Council.[4] He was returned unopposed in the 1954 elections. Following the death of his first wife, in 1955 he married May Ross. James went on to defeat in the 1957 elections.[5] However, in June 1959, he and the two other elected members resigned from the council in protest at the introduction of income tax in the territory.[6]
He later retired to the Yeronga area of Brisbane in Australia, where he died at home in December 1963 at the age of 70.[2]
References[]
- ^ Pacific Islands Year Book and Who's who, Issue 10, pp693–694
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e f Good-Citizen James Of Port Moresby Dies At 70 Pacific Islands Monthly, February 1964, pp71–72
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d Amirah Inglis (1974) 'Not a White Woman Safe': Sexual Anxiety and Politics in Port Moresby 1920–1934, Australian National University Press
- ^ James Patrick Sinclair (1983) South Pacific Brewery: the first thirty years, p33
- ^ New Faces in P-NG Legco Pacific Islands Monthly, September 1957, p19
- ^ The Showdown Comes! New Guinea Tax Issue Leads to A Constitutional Challenge Pacific Islands Monthly, July 1959, pp13–15
- 1893 births
- English accountants
- Papua New Guinean accountants
- Territory of Papua people
- Members of the Legislative Council of Papua and New Guinea
- 1963 deaths
- 20th-century English businesspeople