Russell Thomas White (19 June 1895 – 3 September 1981) was an Australian politician. He was born at Windermere, Victoria to farmer William Nicholas White and Ellen Janet Banfield. He attended Grenville College 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 became a dairy farmer at Cardigan. On 20 December 1917 he married Isabel Wade, with whom he had three children. He was the founding president of the local branch of the Country Party, and served on Ballarat Shire Council from 1928–46, with two periods as president (1934–37, 1942–43). In 1945 he was elected to the

Victorian Legislative Assembly The Victorian Legislative Assembly is the lower house of the bicameral Parliament of Victoria in Australia; the upper house being the Victorian Legislative Council. Both houses sit at Parliament House in Spring Street, Melbourne. The presiding ...

for Allandale. In 1951 he was appointed minister without portfolio and cabinet secretary in the Country Party government. In 1952, he assumed the State Development portfolio. In December 1952 the government was defeated and White moved to the back bench. He changed seats to

Ballarat North Ballarat North (also known as ''North Ballarat'') is a suburb of Ballarat, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia located north of Ballarat's central area. Ballarat North is bounded by Norman Street; Ballarat General Cemetery and Western Fr ...

in 1955 and resigned from parliament in 1960 to become chairman of the Trotting Control Board. He was appointed a

Commander of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

in 1966. White retired in 1973 and died at Ballarat in 1981.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:White, Russell 1895 births 1981 deaths National Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Victoria Members of the Victorian Legislative Assembly Australian Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Politicians from Ballarat 20th-century Australian politicians