William Farrer

William James Farrer

The electorate of Farrer was named after William James Farrer, a distinguished agriculturalist who was the father of the Australian wheat industry.

Born in Docker, Westmorland, England, April 3, 1845, Farrer died on the 16th April 1906. Awarded a scholarship to Christs’ Hospital, London, he won gold and silver medals for mathematics before continuing his education at the University of Cambridge (BA 1868).

Arriving in Australia in 1870, he worked as a tutor at George Campbell’s sheep station, Duntroon (Canberra) and then qualified as a surveyor in New South Wales in 1875, working for the Department of Lands in the Dubbo, Nyngan, Cobar and Cooma districts between 1875-86.

In 1886 Farrer purchased "Lambrigg" on the Murrumbidgee River near where Canberra now stands and began private experiments on cross-breeding wheat from 1889. He was further employed as a wheat experimentalist for the Department of Agriculture in 1898. His best known wheat was “Federation”, which became the leading variety throughout Australia between 1910-25. His success was demonstrated in 1914, when of the 29 wheat varieties recommended for growing in New South Wales, 22 had been developed by him.

His wheats were not so much rust-resistant as rust escaping because of their early maturity. “Federation” was developed especially to tolerate Australia’s harsh climate, and was capable of withstanding diseases such as rust, while producing high yields.

Apart from having a Federal electorate named after him, William Farrer was also commemorated through the Farrer Memorial Medal for outstanding achievements in agricultural science, research and education and the Farrer Memorial Scholarship for postgraduate agricultural research. He also appeared on the first decimal $2 note, and is recognised on a variety of memorials, on stamps and as the namesake of schools, streets, institutions, a flour mill and a suburb in Canberra.