George Adam Kempton (6 August 1871 – 7 June 1945) was an Australian dentist and politician who served as a Country Party 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 1926 to 1932, representing Central Province. He also served three terms as mayor of

Geraldton Geraldton ( Wajarri: ''Jambinu'', Wilunyu: ''Jambinbirri'') is a coastal city in the Mid West region of the Australian state of Western Australia, north of the state capital, Perth. At June 2018, Geraldton had an urban population of 37,648. ...

Early life

Kempton was born in Malvern, Victoria, to Anna (née Norman) and Thomas Kempton.George Adam Kempton
Biographical Register of Members of Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 15 February 2017. He came to Western Australia in 1892, during the

gold rush A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New ...

, and prospected for several years in the Coolgardie and

Lake Carey Lake Carey is a salt lake located in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia. It was named in 1869 by surveyor John Forrest in company with Tommy Windich, after Thomas Campbell Carey, the government surveyor to whom Forrest had ...

districts. Kempton worked in Boulder as a storekeeper from 1895 to 1899, and then moved 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 i ...

to work as a dentist's assistant. He gained a diploma in dentistry in 1905, and subsequently practised in the North-West for three years before moving to

in 1908."FORMER MAYOR'S DEATH"
''

Geraldton Guardian The ''Geraldton Guardian'' was established at Geraldton, Western Australia on 1 October 1906 to serve the Victoria and Murchison Districts. It was launched on principles of liberal democracy, state rights, nationalism and British preference. H ...

'', 9 June 1945.

Politics and later life

Kempton was elected to the Geraldton Municipal Council in 1910, and later served three terms as the town's mayor – from 1913 to 1915, from 1920 to 1921, and from 1923 to 1924. He entered parliament at the 1926 Legislative Council election, defeating the sitting

Labor Labour or labor may refer to: * Childbirth, the delivery of a baby * Labour (human activity), or work ** Manual labour, physical work ** Wage labour, a socioeconomic relationship between a worker and an employer ** Organized labour and the la ...

member,

Thomas Moore Thomas Moore (28 May 1779 – 25 February 1852) was an Irish writer, poet, and lyricist celebrated for his ''Irish Melodies''. Their setting of English-language verse to old Irish tunes marked the transition in popular Irish culture from Irish ...

. Kempton served a single six-year term before Moore reclaimed his seat at the 1932 election. He subsequently returned to his dentistry practice, and eventually retired to Perth, dying there in June 1945 (aged 73). Kempton had been married twice, having two children by his first wife and five by his second.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kempton, George 1871 births 1945 deaths Australian dentists Mayors of places in Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council National Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia Politicians from Melbourne People from Malvern, Victoria Western Australian local councillors

Early life

Politics and later life

See also

References