John Trotter (died 28 July 1954) was an Australian businessman who worked for

Burns Philp Burns Philp (properly Burns, Philp & Co, Limited) was once a major Australian shipping line and merchant that operated in the South Pacific. When the well-populated islands around New Guinea were targeted for blackbirding in the 1880s, a new ...

in Tonga and Fiji for over 30 years. He served as a member of the

Legislative Council of Fiji The Legislative Council of Fiji was the colonial precursor to the present-day Parliament, which came into existence when Fiji became independent on 10 October 1970. The first Legislative Council Immediately after Fiji was ceded to the United ...

between 1938 and 1944.

Biography

After graduating from

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 ...

, Trotter moved to

Tonga Tonga (, ; ), officially the Kingdom of Tonga ( to, Puleʻanga Fakatuʻi ʻo Tonga), is a Polynesian country and archipelago. The country has 171 islands – of which 45 are inhabited. Its total surface area is about , scattered over in ...

in 1913 to set up the Tonga Agricultural College. The following year he went to France to fight in

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 ...

, returning to Tonga in 1918 to become manager of the

Haʻapai Haʻapai is a group of islands, islets, reefs, and shoals in the central part of Tonga. It has a combined land area of . The Tongatapu island group lies to its south, and the Vavaʻu group lies to its north. Seventeen of the Haʻapai islands are ...

branch of Burns Philp.Mr John Trotter
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', August 1954, p139 In 1933 Trotter moved to

Levuka Levuka () is a Local government in Fiji, town on the eastern coast of the Fijian island of Ovalau (Fiji), Ovalau, in Lomaiviti Province, in the Eastern Division, Fiji, Eastern Division of Fiji. Prior to 1877, it was the capital of Fiji. At the c ...

in Fiji, before relocating to

Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Divi ...

three years later, where he became general manager of Burns Philp in the territory. In 1938 he was appointed to the Legislative Council to replace

John Maynard Hedstrom Sir John Maynard Hedstrom (22 February 1872 – 2 June 1951) was a Fijian businessman and politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Council for over 30 years. Alongside Robert Crompton, Henry Marks and Henry Milne Scott, he was one o ...

,Mr. John Trotter
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', February 1938, p9 remaining a member for six years. Trotter retired from Burns Philp in June 1953 and moved to New Zealand.Mr. and Mrs. John Trotter
''Pacific Islands Monthly'', July 1953, p62 He died in Auckland in July 1954 at the age of 66, leaving a widow and two daughters.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trotter, John Australian expatriates in Tonga Australian expatriates in Fiji Australian expatriates in New Zealand Australian military personnel of World War I Members of the Legislative Council of Fiji 1954 deaths