Northern District (South Australian Legislative Council)

Northern District was an electoral district for the Legislative Council of South Australia from 1882 until 1975. Prior to the passing of the Constitution Act Further Amendment Act 1881, the Legislative Council was 18 members elected by people from across the entire Province. From 1975, the Council returned to being elected from the entire state (the province had become a state of Australia in 1901).

At its creation in 1882, the Northern District consisted of three electoral districts for the South Australian House of Assembly - Wallaroo, Stanley and Flinders.^[1] It covered the area of Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula, Flinders Ranges, the upper Mid North and any settlers in areas further north.

Members

When created, the district was to elect six members to the Legislative Council which had been increased to 24 members, six from each of four districts. Transitional arrangements meant that members were only to be elected from the new districts as the terms of the existing members expired.^[1] From 1891, all members were elected by districts.

The Constitution Act Amendment Act 1901 reduced the size of the parliament, and Northern District then elected four members from the new enlarged Assembly districts of Stanley, Burra Burra, Flinders, and the Northern Territory. This added the Northern Territory and the lower Mid North to the Northern District.^[2][3]

Date of change	Member	Member	Member	Member	Member	Member
15 May 1885	Allan Campbell (Elected 1885, 1891; died 30 October 1898)	William Wadham (resigned 31 May 1888)
6 July 1887 by-election			William Copley (retired 14 April 1894)
19 May 1888				John Darling Sr. (retired 14 April 1897)	James O'Loghlin (Elected 1888, 1894; vacated 1902)
11 July 1888 by-election		Arthur Richman Addison (Elected 1888, 1897; vacated 1902)
23 May 1891						Ebenezer Ward (retired 14 April 1900)
1894 South Australian Legislative Council election			John George Bice (Elected 1894, 1900, vacated 1902)
22 May 1897				James Henderson Howe (vacated 1902)
26 November 1898 by-election	Andrew Tennant (vacated 1902)
1900 South Australian Legislative Council election						Kossuth William Duncan (vacated 1902)

From this double dissolution election, each district only elected 4 members, for two terms of the lower house, Legislative Council elections are held at the same time as House of Assembly elections.

Date of change	Member	Member	Member	Member
1902 election	John Lewis (Elected 1902, 1905, 1912, 1921; died 25 August 1923)	John George Bice (Elected 1902, 1905, 1912, 1921; died 9 November 1923)	Arthur Richman Addison (Elected 1902, 1910; died 29 July 1915)	James Henderson Howe (Elected 1902, 1910; retired 28 February 1918)
1905 election
1910 election
1912 election
1915 election does not appear to have been an LC election[3]
16 August 1915 by-election			William Morrow (Elected 1915, 1918, 1924, 1930; died 3 July 1934)
6 April 1918				William George James Mills (Elected 1918, 1924, 1927; retired 28 February 1933)
1921 election
1924 election	George Ritchie (Elected 1924, 1930, 1938; retired 29 February 1944)	Albert Percy Blesing (Elected 1924, 1927, 1933, 1941, 1947; died 2 March 1949)
1927 election
1930 election
1933 election				Hartley Gladstone Hawkins (died 9 July 1939)
20 October 1934 by-election			Alexander Lyell McEwin (Elected 1934, 1938, 1944, 1950, 1956, 1962, 1968; retired 1975)
1938
2 September 1939 by-election				James Beerworth (Elected 1939, 1941; retired 28 February 1947)
1941
1944	Ernest Harry Edmonds (Elected 1944, 1950, 1956, retired 1962)
1947				William Walsh Robinson (Elected 1947, 1953, 1959, retired 1965)
14 May 1949 by-election		Robert Richard Wilson (Elected 1949, 1953, 1959, retired 1965)
1950
1953
1956
1959
1962	Gordon James Gilfillan (Elected 1962, 1968, retired 1975)
1965		Charles Caleb Dudley Octoman (died 11 September 1966)		Richard Alexander Geddes (Elected 1965, 1973, retired 1979)
29 October 1966 by-election		Arthur Mornington Whyte (Elected 1966, 1973, 1979, resigned 19 November 1985)
1968
1973