Alexander Fraser (2 January 1802 – 20 August 1888) was a businessman and politician in colonial

Victoria (Australia) Victoria is a state in southeastern Australia. It is the second-smallest state with a land area of , the second most populated state (after New South Wales) with a population of over 6.5 million, and the most densely populated state in ...

, a member of 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 Co ...

. Fraser was born in

Aldourie Aldourie ( gd, Allt Dobharaidh meaning ''dark water'' or ''stream water'') is a small crofting village on the east shore of Loch Ness. It lies about southwest of Inverness and is within the council of Highland, Scotland. Aldourie Castle, seat ...

Inverness-shire Inverness-shire ( gd, Siorrachd Inbhir Nis) is a historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. Covering much of the Highlands and Outer Hebrides, it is Scotland's largest county, though one of the smallest in populatio ...

, Scotland, eldest of the ten children of John Fraser, a farmer and Free Church elder, and his wife Ann, ''née'' Fraser. In 1827 Fraser went to London and five years later sailed for Sydney,

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, in the ''Rubicon''. The ship, however, put in at

Hobart Hobart ( ; Nuennonne/Palawa kani: ''nipaluna'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Home to almost half of all Tasmanians, it is the least-populated Australian state capital city, and second-small ...

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

(then called

Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania used by the British during the European exploration of Australia in the 19th century. A British settlement was established in Van Diemen's Land in 1803 before it became a sepa ...

), and he decided to stay there, which he did till 1852, when he visited Victoria and decided to settle there. Fraser had been interested in pastoral properties in the colony as far back as 1836, and he now started as an auctioneer in

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...

, removing the business to Melbourne in 1853. In October 1858 Fraser was elected to the Legislative Council for the North Western Province, and was Commissioner of Public Works in the Francis Ministry from 14 June 1872 to 4 May 1874, representing the Government in the Council (Upper House). He was principally known as the plaintiff in an action which he brought against ''

The Age ''The Age'' is a daily newspaper in Melbourne, Australia, that has been published since 1854. Owned and published by Nine Entertainment, ''The Age'' primarily serves Victoria (Australia), Victoria, but copies also sell in Tasmania, the Austral ...

'' (Melbourne) in 1878 for damages for a libel contained in an article reflecting on his conduct towards a deceased brother who had died in England in indigent circumstances. He recovered £250. Fraser died in

St Kilda, Victoria St Kilda is an inner seaside suburb in Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 6 km (4 miles) south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne City Centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Port Phillip Local governmen ...

, Australia on 20 August 1888.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fraser, Alexander 1802 births 1888 deaths Members of the Victorian Legislative Council People from Inverness Scottish emigrants to colonial Australia 19th-century Australian politicians