Francis Drake Willmott (23 January 1904 – 4 August 2004) was an Australian politician who was a

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

member of the Legislative Council 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 1955 to 1974. He is the only member of the

Parliament of Western Australia The Parliament of Western Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of Western Australia, forming the legislative branch of the Government of Western Australia. The parliament consists of a lower house, the Legislative Ass ...

known to have lived past the age of 100.''The Western Australian Parliamentary Handbook (Twenty-Third Edition)''
, p. 242. Willmott was born in Nannup, a small town in the

South West The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...

region of Western Australia, to Frances Edith (née Brockman) and Francis Edward Sykes Willmott. His father, uncle (

Edmund Vernon Brockman Edmund Vernon Brockman (28 April 1882 – 4 January 1938) was an Australian politician who was a Nationalist Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1933 until his death, representing the seat of Sussex. Brockman w ...

), and first cousin ( William Willmott) were all also members of parliament. Willmott was sent to

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

to be educated, boarding at

Hale School Hale School is an independent, Anglican day and boarding school for boys, located in Wembley Downs, a western suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Named after the school founded by Bishop Mathew Blagden Hale in 1858, Hale School claims to b ...

. He afterward returned to his father's farm near

Bridgetown Bridgetown (UN/LOCODE: BB BGI) is the capital and largest city of Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Island ...

, which he and his brother eventually took over. Willmott was elected to the Bridgetown Road Board in 1941, serving until 1947.Francis Drake Willmott
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 20 May 2016. A long-time member of the Liberal Party, Willmott was elected to parliament at a Legislative Council by-election in September 1955, necessitated by the death of

Charles Henning Charles Harriot Henning (21 September 1897 – 22 June 1955) was an Australian military officer, farmer, and politician who was a Liberal Party member of the Legislative Council of Western Australia from 1951 until his death, representing Sout ...

. Representing South-West Province, a Liberal stronghold, he was elected unopposed at all subsequent elections. Willmott was appointed deputy chairman of committees after the 1965 state election, serving until his retirement at the 1974 election. He retired to Perth after leaving parliament, where he died in August 2004, aged 100. Willmott had married Edith Frances Riches in 1934, with whom he had two sons and a daughter. His wife was a granddaughter of

James Henry Young James Henry Young (15 May 1834 – 9 May 1908) was an Australian colonial businessman and politician and Speaker of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. Early life and business Young was born at Moor Court, near Romsey, Hampshire to Martha ...

, who was a state MP in New South Wales.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Willmott, Francis 1904 births 2004 deaths Australian centenarians 20th-century Australian farmers Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council Men centenarians People educated at Hale School People from the South West (Western Australia) Australian people of English descent 20th-century Australian politicians

See also

References