David Forrest (2 January 1852 – 5 January 1917) was an Australian politician, a member of the

Western Australian Legislative Assembly The Western Australian Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Western Australia, an Australian state. The Parliament sits in Parliament House, Perth, Parliament House in the Western Australian capi ...

from 1900 to 1901, holding the seat of Ashburton. He was the younger brother of Sir John Forrest and

Alexander Forrest Alexander Forrest CMG (22 September 1849 – 20 June 1901) was an explorer and surveyor of Western Australia, and later also a member of parliament. As a government surveyor, Forrest explored many areas of remote Western Australia, particu ...

, and the great-grandfather of

Andrew Forrest John Andrew Henry Forrest (born 18 November 1961), nicknamed Twiggy, is an Australian businessman. He is best known as the former CEO (and current non-executive chairman) of Fortescue Metals Group (FMG), and has other interests in the mining i ...

. Forrest was the sixth child of William and Margaret Forrest. He was born at his parents' flour mill on

Preston River The Preston River is a river in the South West region of Western Australia. The river has a total length of and rises near Goonac siding then flows in a north-westerly direction until discharging into the Leschenault Estuary. The headwaters ...

at Picton, near

Bunbury, Western Australia Bunbury is a coastal city in the Australian state of Western Australia, approximately south of the state capital, Perth. It is the state's third most populous city after Perth and Mandurah, with a population of approximately 75,000. Located a ...

. He initially attended a one-room school that his father had built on his property, then later attended Bishop Hale's school (now

Hale School Hale School is an independent, Anglican day and boarding school for boys, located in Wembley Downs, a western suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Named after the school founded by Bishop Mathew Blagden Hale in 1858, Hale School claims to be ...

) in Perth. From 1873 to 1876, Forrest worked with sheep at Cubbine station near

Quairading Quairading is a Western Australian town located in the Wheatbelt region. It is the seat of government for the Shire of Quairading. History The town was named for Quairading Spring, derived from a local Aboriginal word recorded in 1872 by s ...

. In 1874, Forrest drove a mob of sheep to a new lease of land (granted to Forrest, his brothers John and Alexander, and Septimus Burt) known as Minderoo, in the Ashburton district, and subsequently became the manager of the new station. In 1881, Forrest married Mary Parker at

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

, after a seven-year engagement. They had seven children, three of whom died as infants. One of his sons,

Mervyn Forrest Robert Mervyn Forrest (28 April 1891 – 22 August 1975) was an Australian pastoralist and politician who served as a Liberal Party member of the Legislative Council of Western Australia from 1946 to 1952, representing North Province. Early l ...

, took over the family's pastoral interests, and like his father became a member of parliament. Forrest was the first chairman of the Ashburton Roads Board, a justice of the peace, and

Member of the Legislative Assembly A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. ...

for the seat of Ashburton from 1900 to 1901. Forrest retired to Claremont, and died in 1917 at his residence, "Minderoo". He was buried at

Karrakatta Cemetery Karrakatta Cemetery is a metropolitan cemetery in the suburb of Karrakatta in Perth, Western Australia. Karrakatta Cemetery first opened for burials in 1899, the first being that of wheelwright Robert Creighton. Managed by the Metropolitan Ce ...

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Forrest, David 1852 births 1917 deaths People from Bunbury, Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery