Josiah Francis (7 March 1825 – 11 May 1891) was a

miner A miner is a person who extracts ore, coal, chalk, clay, or other minerals from the earth through mining. There are two senses in which the term is used. In its narrowest sense, a miner is someone who works at the rock face; cutting, blasting, ...

and member of the

Queensland Legislative Assembly The Legislative Assembly of Queensland is the sole chamber of the unicameral Parliament of Queensland established under the Constitution of Queensland. Elections are held every four years and are done by full preferential voting. The Assembly ...

Biography

Francis was born at St Ann's Chapel,

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

, England, to father Joseph Youlten (1783–1832) and mother, Grace Nichols (1786–1852) was educated in St Ann's Chapel. After arriving in Australia he took up mining, working at

Burra Burra Burra is a pastoral centre and historic tourist town in the mid-north of South Australia. It lies east of the Clare Valley in the Bald Hills range, part of the northern Mount Lofty Ranges, and on Burra Creek. The town began as a single company ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

and in

Ballarat Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...

and

Bendigo Bendigo ( ) is a city in Victoria, Australia, located in the Bendigo Valley near the geographical centre of the state and approximately north-west of Melbourne, the state capital. As of 2019, Bendigo had an urban population of 100,991, makin ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

. At Burra Burra in 1849 he married Elizabeth Dunstan (died 1910)Family history research
— Queensland Government births, deaths, marriages, and divorces. Retrieved 31 March 2016. and together had eight sons and six daughters. Some time after 10 August 1861 (the birth of Henry Alfred Youlten in South Australia) and before the birth of James Dunstone Francis in Queensland on 30 September 1863, the Youlten family migrated from South Australia to Queensland. On 10 April 1861, an auction was conducted at Norwood, South Australia, for the sale of all goods, livestock, etc. The dwelling was advertised within the same auction notice "to let". As well, all outstanding accounts were called for to enable settlement, as the family was "relocating to Yorke's Peninsula". The first seven children of Josiah and Elizabeth were registered under the name of Youlten in South Australia between 1850 and 1861 and it would appear the Youlten children who survived and subsequently moved to Queensland with their parents were raised under the surname Francis so the family's name change probably coincided with their residency in Queensland. The reasons for the name change are not known. He died in

Ipswich Ipswich () is a port town and borough in Suffolk, England, of which it is the county town. The town is located in East Anglia about away from the mouth of the River Orwell and the North Sea. Ipswich is both on the Great Eastern Main Line r ...

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , established_ ...

and was buried in the

Ipswich General Cemetery The Ipswich General Cemetery is a historic cemetery in Ipswich, Queensland, Australia. It is the second oldest cemetery in Queensland. It is owned by Ipswich City Council, but the council have outsourced the day-to-day operations to a private c ...

.Methodist Uniting B Section
— Australian Cemeteries. Retrieved 3 April 2016.

Public career

Francis was an alderman in Ipswich from 1876 until 1887. During that time he was twice Mayor, in 1878-1879 and 1884–1886. He was the member for

in the Queensland Legislative Assembly from 1881 to 1883.

Personal life

Francis's grandson, also named

Josiah Francis Sir Josiah Francis (28 March 1890 – 22 February 1964) was an Australian politician who served in the House of Representatives from 1922 to 1955. He was a minister in the Lyons and Menzies governments, serving as Minister in charge of War Se ...

, represented Ipswich in federal parliament and became a federal government minister.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Francis, Josiah Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly 1825 births 1891 deaths Burials at Ipswich General Cemetery 19th-century Australian politicians