Francis James Foster was an Australia

Australia

Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...

n politician. Born in Sofala, New South Wales

Sofala, New South Wales

Sofala is a village located approximately 250 km north-west of Sydney, New South Wales, within Bathurst Regional Council. It is located beside the Turon River. Sofala is just off the Bathurst-Ilford Road, with only local traffic through the town itself...

, he received a primary education, and held various jobs including a miner, farmhand and teacher. He then became a shopkeeper and orchardist in Inverell

Inverell, New South Wales

Inverell is a town in northern New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Macintyre River. It is also the centre of Inverell Shire. Inverell is located on the Gwydir Highway on the western slopes of the Northern Tablelands. It has a temperate climate...

. In 1906, he was selected as the Labor

Australian Labor Party

The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...

 candidate for the Australian House of Representatives

Australian House of Representatives

The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....

 seat of New England

Division of New England

The Division of New England is an Australian Electoral Division in the state of New South Wales. It is located in the north-east of the state, adjoining the border with Queensland. It includes such towns as Armidale, Ashford, Barraba, Bingara, Bundarra, Glen Innes, Gunnedah, Guyra, Inverell,...

, and defeated Edmund Lonsdale

Edmund Lonsdale

Edmund Lonsdale was an Australian politician. Born in Morpeth, New South Wales, he was schooled in Maitland before becoming a bricklayer, builder and contractor. He was also an alderman on Armidale Shire Council...

, the Anti-Socialist MP. He held the seat until 1913, when he was defeated, after which he became a company director. Foster died in 1948.