Edmund Birch

Edmund Birch (1831– 16 January 1875 ) was a Member of the Western Australia n Legislative Council from 1873 to 1875 .

Born in England in 1831 , Birch emigrated to Western Australia on the ''Parkfield'' in March 1841 . There he was apprenticed to George Shenton Snr as a Pharmacist . From 1852 to 1853 , he was an assistant at the Colonial Hospital (now Royal Perth Hospital ). He then went into partnership with his father and brother as pharmacists and grocers in Perth . In May 1856 he married Anne Hymus; they would have eight children.

Birch began to take an interest in public life, becoming vice president of the Perth Workingmen's Association and chairman of the Swan Mechanics' Institute . In 1862 he was a founding director of the Perth Building Society . The following year he became a member of the Perth Municipal Council , which position he held until his death. He became a member of the Perth Board of Education, a director of the WA Bank, and in 1872 was captain of the Volunteer Rifle Corps .

On 19 October 1870 , Birch contested the Legislative Council Seat Of Perth , but was unsuccessful. On 18 November 1873 , he contested the seat again in a By-election . He won the seat, holding it until his death. He died on 16 January 1875 as a result of injuries from a fire.

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