David Bowman | |
|---|---|
 Bowman in 1915 | |
| Leader of the Opposition in Queensland Elections:1907,1908,1909,1912 | |
| In office 16 November 1908 – 6 September 1912 | |
| Preceded by | Robert Philp |
| Succeeded by | T. J. Ryan |
| Leader of the Labor Party in Queensland | |
| In office 15 April 1907 – 6 September 1912 | |
| Preceded by | George Kerr |
| Succeeded by | T. J. Ryan |
| Home Secretary of Queensland | |
| In office 1 June 1915 – 25 February 1916 | |
| Preceded by | Kenneth Grant |
| Succeeded by | T. J. Ryan |
| Member of theQueensland Parliament forWarrego | |
| In office 16 December 1899 – 11 March 1902 | |
| Preceded by | William Hood |
| Succeeded by | Patrick Leahy |
| Member of theQueensland Parliament forFortitude Valley | |
| In office 27 August 1904 – 25 February 1916 | |
| Preceded by | John McMaster |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Wilson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | David Bowman (1860-08-24)24 August 1860 |
| Died | 25 February 1916(1916-02-25) (aged 55) |
| Resting place | Toowong Cemetery |
| Political party | Labor |
| Spouse | Elizabeth Jane Fisher |
| Occupation | Bootmaker,Union official |
David Bowman (24 August 1860 – 25 February 1916) was aLabor politician in theLegislative Assembly of Queensland andQueensland Leader of the Opposition from 1908 to 1912.
Bowman was born inBendigo,Victoria on 4 August 1860. He was son of Archibald Bowman, a miner and Isabella Bowman (née Spence) both of whom were born inScotland. Trained as a bootmaker in Victoria, Bowman moved north toQueensland in 1888. The following year, Bowman became the president of theBrisbane District Council of the Australian Labour Federation (ALF).[1] In 1891, as an employee of the ALF, Bowman was responsible for organizing shearers and bushworkers during the pastoral strike. In 1892, he was elected as vice-president and the following year he became the president of the ALF.[1]
Bowman's first attempt at entering politics was at the1893 colonial election in the seatSouth Brisbane, losing out toHarry Turley andCharles Midson in the two member electorate. At the1899 election, Bowman ran again, this time in the rural south western seat ofWarrego. MinisterialistWilliam Hood had been returned by a one-vote majority. Bowman, the sole opponent, filed a petition against Hood's return and on 21 November 1899, the election was declared void. Bowman won the resultingby-election on 16 December 1899 with a majority of 44 votes. At the following election in1902, Bowman lost in his seat to Ministerialist,Patrick Leahy. After the defeat, he returned to Brisbane where he opened a newsagency atNew Farm.[1]
Bowman stood again at the1904 election in the north eastern Brisbane seat ofFortitude Valley where he was victorious. He was returned as the Member for Fortitude Valley in the next six elections, holding the seat until his death.[2]
Though accepting his party's decision to join theMorgan-Browne coalition in September 1903, Bowman believed that Labor should not ally itself with other parties but should aim to govern in its own right. By 1905, he had joinedAlbert Hinchcliffe andMat Reid, secretary and president of the Central Political Executive, andHenry Boote, editor ofThe Worker, in opposing the continuation of the Liberal-Labor coalition, now dominated byWilliam Kidston.
Bowman became vice-president of the Central Political Executive in 1904 and at the 1905 and 1907 Labor in Politics conventions led a parliamentary faction opposed to Kidston, which succeeded in committing the party to fighting future elections alone.George Kerr, Labor leader from 1904 to 1907 supported the continuation of the coalition but was decisively defeated when the convention resolved that Labor should stand alone. Following the 1907 convention, Bowman was elected as the parliamentary Labor leader. He was not an outstanding parliamentarian and was disabled as a leader by poor health. He was, however, liked and respected for his personality and integrity by colleagues and opponents alike.[1]
Bowman lead Labor into the1907,1908,1909 and1912 state elections failing to win a majority every time.
After the 1912 election, Bowman resigned as leader andT. J. Ryan was elected in his place. Ryan led Labor to their first majority government in Queensland at the1915 election, winning 45 of the 72 seats. On 1 June, Bowman was sworn in as theHome Secretary as part theRyan Ministry. However, his health was so poor thatJohn Huxham became his assistant minister.[1]
Bowman married Elizabeth Jane Fisher on 20 May 1885 in Ballarat. Together they had two daughters and two sons.[1]
Bowman died inBrisbane on 25 February 1916. He was buried inToowong Cemetery[3] with Presbyterian rites.[1]
In 1948, the newly proclaimed Queenslandfederal electoral division ofBowman was named in honour. Bowman Park at Simpsons RoadBardon (at that time known as 'Upper Paddington') was also named in his honour, shortly after his death in 1916.[4]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Leader of the Opposition in Queensland 1908 – 1912 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Home Secretary of Queensland 1915 – 1916 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Leader of theLabor Party in Queensland 1907 – 1912 | Succeeded by |
| Parliament of Queensland | ||
| Preceded by | Member forWarrego 1899 – 1902 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member forFortitude Valley 1904 – 1916 Served alongside:McDonnell,McMaster,McLachlan | Succeeded by |
