Alexander Bell (20 July 1850 – 27 March 1931) was a Scottish-born Australian politician. He was born in Dunfermline,

Fifeshire Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i.e ...

to miner Alexander Bell and Sophia Williamson. He was born a month after their wedding in June 1850. He came to

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

with his family around 1855. He became a grocer in Ballarat, owning two stores by 1889. On 2 April 1874 he married Jessie Scott, with whom he had nine children. Around 1892 he became an auctioneer and sharebroker, and he served on Ballarat City Council from 1891 to 1899 and from 1910 to 1931, serving twice as mayor (1896–97, 1917–18). In 1917 he won a by-election for

Wellington Province Wellington Province, governed by the Wellington Provincial Council, was one of the provinces of New Zealand from 1853 until the abolition of provincial government in 1876. It covered much of the southern half of the North Island until November 18 ...

in the

Victorian Legislative Council The Victorian Legislative Council (VLC) is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria, Australia, the lower house being the Legislative Assembly. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The Legislative C ...

, representing the Nationalist Party. He served in the Council until his death in Ballarat in 1931.

Legacy

Bell Street in the south Ballarat suburb of

Redan Redan (a French word for "projection", "salient") is a feature of fortifications. It is a work in a V-shaped salient angle towards an expected attack. It can be made from earthworks or other material. The redan developed from the lunette, o ...

is named after him.City of Ballarat, 5 January 2012. ''Roads and Open Space Index'', pg.8, Ballarat: City of Ballarat

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell, Alexander 1850 births 1931 deaths Nationalist Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria United Australia Party members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Council Colony of Victoria people British emigrants to Australia