Captain Frank Augustus Chaffey (31 March 1888 – 9 July 1940) was an Australian politician. He was born at

Moonbi Moonbi is a village situated on the New England Highway 20 kilometres north of Tamworth, New South Wales, Australia. It is nestled at the foot of the Moonbi Range and is part of the Tamworth Regional Council local government area. Moonbi is l ...

to farmer William Adolphus Chaffey and Amelia, ''née'' Chad. He was educated at Nemingha and Tamworth before attending

Hawkesbury Agricultural College Hawkesbury Agricultural College was the first agricultural college in New South Wales, Australia, based in Richmond. It operated from 1891 to 1989. It was established on 10 March 1891, and formally opened by Minister for Mines and Agriculture ...

, after which he worked on the family dairy farm. He studied at

Sydney Technical College The Sydney Technical College, now known as the TAFE New South Wales Sydney Institute, is a technical school established in 1878, that superseded the Sydney Mechanics' School of Arts. The college is one of Australia's oldest technical education i ...

from 1907 and worked as a woolclasser briefly before returning to Tamworth to run the farm. He was active in the local

Farmers and Settlers Association The Farmers' and Settlers' Association of New South Wales was an umbrella organisation of farmers' and selectors' associations in New South Wales, founded in 1893. History The Association was formed in 1893 as the outcome of a conference held in Co ...

. On 1 May 1912 he married Amy Stella McIlveen, with whom he had six children. During

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he served with the

1st Light Horse Brigade The 1st Light Horse Brigade was a mounted infantry brigade of the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), which served in the Middle Eastern theatre of World War I. The brigade was initially formed as a part-time militia formation in the early 1900s in ...

and from 1918 to 1919 was Director of Education of the Australian Infantry Forces. Chaffey was elected to the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament Ho ...

in 1913 as the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

member for Tamworth. When proportional representation was introduced in 1920 (by which time the Liberal Party had become the Nationalist Party), he became one of the members for Namoi, but he returned to his old seat when single-member electorates were re-introduced in 1927. He was Assistant Minister for Lands and Agriculture from April 1922 until June, when he became full Minister, serving until 1925; he later served as Secretary for Mines and Minister for Forests (1927–1929) and Colonial Secretary (1929–38). On 9 July 1940, Chaffey died of a

coronary occlusion A coronary occlusion is the partial or complete obstruction of blood flow in a coronary artery. This condition may cause a heart attack. In some patients coronary occlusion causes only mild pain, tightness or vague discomfort which may be ignored ...

at his Sydney home in

Rose Bay, New South Wales Rose Bay is a harbourside, eastern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Rose Bay is located seven kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government areas of Waverley Council (east of Old S ...

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Alexander Mair Alexander Mair (25 August 18893 August 1969) was an Australian politician who served as Premier of New South Wales from 5 August 1939 to 16 May 1941. Born in Melbourne, Mair worked in various businesses there before moving to Albury, New Sout ...

spoke after his death that "The State has lost a splendid citizen of the highest worth. As a Member of the Legislative Assembly and a former Cabinet Minister, and as a private citizen he was held in the highest esteem" and that; "His career was one of the longest in the history of the State. He showed outstanding capacity as an administrator." Chaffey was cremated at

Northern Suburbs Crematorium The Northern Suburbs Crematorium, officially Northern Suburbs Memorial Gardens and Crematorium, is a crematorium in North Ryde, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney, Australia. It was officially opened on 28 October 1933, and the first cremation t ...

following a private service which was held at St Michael's Church,

Vaucluse Vaucluse (; oc, Vauclusa, label= Provençal or ) is a department in the southeastern French region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It had a population of 561,469 as of 2019.Bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

Chaffey Dam Chaffey Dam is a minor ungated rock fill with clay core embankment dam with an uncontrolled ''morning glory'' spillway across the Peel River, located upstream of the city of Tamworth, in the New England region of New South Wales, Australia. Th ...

, a large freshwater dam on the Peel River north of

Tamworth, New South Wales Tamworth is a city and administrative centre of the north-western region of New South Wales, Australia. Situated on the Peel River (New South Wales), Peel River within the local government area of the Tamworth Regional Council, it is the largest ...

is named after both Frank and

Bill Chaffey Major William Adolphus Chaffey (18 February 1915 – 4 March 1987) was an Australian farmer, distinguished soldier and long serving member of the Parliament of New South Wales. Chaffey represented the electoral district of Tamworth from 194 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chaffey, Frank 1888 births 1940 deaths Nationalist Party of Australia members of the Parliament of New South Wales United Australia Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly Australian farmers Australian soldiers University of Technology Sydney alumni 20th-century Australian politicians