# Ernest Albert Atherton

Ernest Albert Atherton (22 MAR 1879 – 29 JUN 1954); child of John Atherton and Catherine Grainger; born in Mareeba, Queensland, Australia; died in Mareeba, Queensland, Australia.

**Lifespan:** 22 MAR 1879 – 29 JUN 1954

## Parents
- [John Atherton](/p/john-atherton-22482.md) (father)
- [Catherine Grainger](/p/catherine-grainger-22483.md) (mother)

## Timeline
- 22 MAR 1879 — **Born** at Mareeba, Queensland, Australia
- DEC 1896 — **Education** at Cairns, Queensland, Australia — Education continued till age 17.
- 1897 — **Occupation** at Mareeba, Queensland, Australia — Worked at home as a Pastoralist.
- FROM 1916 — **Occupation (Sugar cane and dairy farmer)** at Mareeba, Queensland, Australia — Farmed sugar cane and dairy cattle from 1916, having earlier worked as a butcher and a storekeeper.
- 11 MAY 1929 — **Occupation** at Brisbane, Queensland, Australia — Was elected to the State MLA Parliament as the Member for Chilligoe on 11 May 1929 and served as Minister for Mines from 21 May 1929 to 17 June 1932. He was defeated at the next Election on 10 June 1932.
- FROM 11 MAY 1929 TO 10 JUN 1932 — **Member for Chillagoe, Queensland Legislative Assembly** at Chillagoe, Queensland, Australia — Won the far northern seat of Chillagoe for the Country and Progressive National Party at the state election of 11 May 1929, defeating the sitting Labor member John O'Keefe. Chillagoe was abolished before the 1932 election; he stood for the new seat of The Tableland and was defeated by the Labor candidate Harry Bruce.
- FROM 21 MAY 1929 TO 17 JUN 1932 — **Secretary for Mines, Queensland** at Brisbane, Queensland, Australia — Held the mines portfolio in the Moore ministry, taking office ten days after first entering parliament.
- 1931 — **Occupation (Tobacco farmer)** at Mareeba, Queensland, Australia — Recorded as a tobacco farmer in 1931, while sitting in parliament for Chillagoe.
- JUN 1954 — **Buried** — Buried in the Atherton family cemetery at Emerald End, the family's cattle station near Mareeba. No place row exists for Emerald End, so this event carries no place.
- 29 JUN 1954 — **Died** at Mareeba, Queensland, Australia
- **First Chairman, Barron Shire Council** at Mareeba, Queensland, Australia — Was the first chairman of the Barron Shire Council, later the Mareeba Shire Council, before entering state parliament in 1929. No dates of office are recorded in the sources consulted.
- **Chairman, Cairns Harbour Board** at Cairns, Queensland, Australia — Chaired the Cairns Harbour Board in the early 1920s. He was also a member of the Cairns Agricultural and Pastoral Association and of the Northern Patriotic Council from 1916 to 1919.

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