John Henry Prowse (16 June 1871 – 20 May 1944) was an Australian politician. Born in

Adelong, New South Wales Adelong is a small town in the Riverina region of New South Wales, Australia, situated on the banks of the Adelong Creek. Adelong sits on the Snowy Mountains Highway and is a part of the Snowy Valleys Council. At the , Adelong had an urban popul ...

, he was educated at public schools and then at Kings College,

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 ...

. He became an insurance agent and then a station owner in

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 ...

, where he eventually became a Perth City Councillor, serving as

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

1913–1914. In 1919, Prowse was elected to the

Australian House of Representatives The House of Representatives is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the upper house being the Senate. Its composition and powers are established in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia. The term of members of the ...

as the member for

Swan Swans are birds of the family (biology), family Anatidae within the genus ''Cygnus''. The swans' closest relatives include the goose, geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in the subfamily Anserinae where they form t ...

, representing the Farmers' and Settlers' Association, which in 1920 solidified to become the

Australian Country Party The National Party of Australia, also known as The Nationals or The Nats, is an List of political parties in Australia, Australian political party. Traditionally representing graziers, farmers, and regional voters generally, it began as the Au ...

. Prowse transferred to the new seat of Forrest in 1922, allowing party colleague Henry Gregory (member for the abolished Dampier) to contest Swan. He served as chairman of committees from 1934 to 1943, the first member of his party to hold the position. Prowse held Forrest until his defeat in 1943 by future

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 labour ...

minister

Nelson Lemmon Nelson Lemmon (22 March 1908 – 20 March 1989) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and served as Department of Works and Housing, Minister for Works and Housing (1946–1949) in the Chifley Gov ...

. He died at his home in

Donnybrook, Western Australia Donnybrook is a town situated between Boyanup, Western Australia, Boyanup and Kirup, Western Australia, Kirup on the South Western Highway, south of Perth, Western Australia. The town is the centre of apple cultivation in Western Australia. Th ...

the following year.

References

1871 births 1944 deaths National Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Swan Members of the Australian House of Representatives for Forrest Members of the Australian House of Representatives Mayors and Lord Mayors of Perth, Western Australia 20th-century Australian politicians People from Adelong, New South Wales {{Australia-mayor-stub