James Fraser (railways administrator)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Fraser was born in Braidwood, New South Wales, and educated at Sydney Grammar School.[citation needed]
He joined the railways as a cadet draftsman[2] or civil engineer,[3] and in 1903 succeeded Thomas Rhodes Firth, his father-in-law, as engineer-in-chief for existing lines.[citation needed]
In 1914 he was appointed Assistant Commissioner, and in 1917 became Chief Commissioner, in place of Harper, who was in poor health. The role of Assistant Commissioner was restored:
- Edward Milne, Assistant Commissioner, traffic
- John Henry Cann, Assistant Commissioner, construction
- Henry Fox, Assistant Commissioner, staff matters[4]
He resigned in 1929 and was succeeded by W. J. Cleary.[3]
1931 he was appointed to the Transport Coordination Board,[3] which was dissolved in 1932 after the collapse of the Lang Government.[citation needed]
He died at his home "Arnprior", Avon Road, Pymble, at the age of 74 after a year suffering from tuberculosis.
