Edgar Alfred "Oscar" Oates (1 November 1889 – 2 September 1951) was an Australian politician. He was a

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 ...

member of the

South Australian Legislative Council The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the House of Assembly. It sits in Parli ...

from 1933 until his death. He was born at Kangaroo Flat, 5 km north of

Gawler Gawler is the oldest country town on the Australian mainland in the state of South Australia. It was named after the second Governor (British Vice-Regal representative) of the colony of South Australia, George Gawler. It is about north of the ...

, and was educated at the Gawler school, before working as a wharf labourer at Port Adelaide. He was a member of the Waterside Workers Federation from 1916 to the day he died, and served as president of its Port Adelaide branch and on its state executive. He was a fierce union rival of future independent MP Thomas Thompson, ousting Thompson as branch president and expelling him from the union. He was also president of the SA Public Schools Committees' Association and president of the state executive of the Working Men's Association. He was elected for

in 1933 to the Legislative Council for the Central No. 1 district, with a substantial support from preferences. During his term of office he made three attempts to introduce a State lottery, and was about to make a fourth on the week he died. He also made considerable attempts to have a new hospital built in the Port Adelaide area. He was a member of the Parliamentary Land Settlement Committee, and Libraries and Printing Committees. He died suddenly at his

Rosewater Rose water ( fa, گلاب) is a flavoured water made by steeping rose petals in water. It is the hydrosol portion of the distillate of rose petals, a by-product of the production of rose oil for use in perfume. Rose water is also used to flavour ...

home in 1951 while still in office; he had been scheduled to be the main speaker at a Labor rally later that day. He was buried at Cheltenham Cemetery, and the Waterside Workers' Federation donated a new pulpit for Dale Street Central Mission Church in his honour. He was married to Ada Grace; they had a son, Alfred J. G. Oates of

and a daughter Joan, Mrs. A McDonald of Rosewater Gardens. They lived at 38 Junction road. Rosewater.

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{{DEFAULTSORT:Oates, Edgar Alfred Members of the South Australian Legislative Council Australian trade unionists 1889 births 1951 deaths 20th-century Australian politicians