Francis James Rowe (22 September 1860 – 23 October 1939) was an Australian trade unionist and politician who was a Labor Party member of the Legislative Assembly of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

from 1927 to 1930, representing the seat of North-East Fremantle. Rowe was born in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

to Susan Ann (née Stephens) and Francis Rowe. A trained stonemason, he arrived in Western Australia in 1900 and began working on the Fremantle Wharf.Francis James Rowe
Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 5 January 2017. Rowe was elected secretary of the Fremantle Lumpers Union in 1902, and would serve in the position until entering parliament (including during the 1919 wharf riot). He also served on the board of

Fremantle Hospital Fremantle Hospital is an Australian public hospital situated on South Terrace in central Fremantle, southwest of Perth, Western Australia. It was formerly the major hospital in its region; however, with the opening of Fiona Stanley Hospital ...

for 19 years, and was a member of the East Fremantle Municipal Council. Prior to the 1924 state election, Rowe contested the Labor

preselection Preselection is the process by which a candidate is selected, usually by a political party, to contest an election for political office. It is also referred to as candidate selection. It is a fundamental function of political parties. The presele ...

ballot for the seat of Fremantle. He was narrowly defeated by Joseph Sleeman, a future

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Speaker of the Legislative Assembly is a title commonly held by presiding officers of parliamentary bodies styled legislative assemblies. The office is most widely used in state and territorial legislatures in Australia, and in provincial and ter ...

."Mr. Rowe Elected."
''The West Australian'', 28 March 1927. Rowe entered parliament at the 1927 election, replacing the retiring

William Angwin William Charles Angwin (8 May 1863 – 9 June 1944) was an Australian politician who was Deputy Premier of Western Australia from 1924 until 1927, and Agent-General for Western Australia in London from 1927 until 1933. Born in Cornwall, Engla ...

in North-East Fremantle. His time in politics, however, as in 1930 he was defeated by

Hubert Parker Hubert Stanley Wyborn Parker DSO VD (16 October 1883—26 July 1966) was an Australian politician who represented the Western Australian Legislative Assembly seat of North-East Fremantle from 1930 until 1933, and one of the three Legisla ...

of the Nationalist Party. Rowe died in Fremantle in 1939, aged 79. He had married Rose Kaveney in 1887, but had no children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rowe, Francis 1860 births 1939 deaths Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Western Australia Trade unionists from Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly People from Fremantle Western Australian local councillors People from the Colony of Victoria