Surveyor_General_of_Western_Australia
Surveyor General of Western Australia
Responsible for government surveying in Western Australia
The Surveyor General of Western Australia is the person nominally responsible for government surveying in Western Australia.
In the early history of Western Australia, the office of surveyor general was one of the most important public offices. The first surveyor general, John Septimus Roe, was responsible for the laying out of many townsites, including Perth and Fremantle, and played a prominent role in the politics of the day. Another surveyor general, John Forrest, became Premier of Western Australia, and later a Cabinet minister in Australia's first federal government.
In modern times, the position of surveyor general has diminished in importance. It remains a statutory office, and is housed within the current agency named Landgate.