FORREST, ALEXANDER (1849-1901), explorer, politician and investor, was born on 22 September 1849 at Picton, near Bunbury, Western Australia, fourth of nine sons of William
Forrest, miller, and his wife Margaret Guthrie, née
Hill. His older brother was (Sir)
John Forrest. After education at Bishop Mathew Hale's School in 1863-65, he worked at his father's mill until in 1868 he advertised himself as a surveyor. This somewhat premature move was followed by a further period of training, but by 1870 he was experienced enough to serve as second-in-command of
John's first transcontinental expedition, along the edge of the Great Australian
Bright. On 1 January 1871 he was appointed to the Survey Department as surveyor-in-charge of the
Albany district; but, following a reorganization later that year, he became an independent licensed surveyor working by contract for the department. This kept him constantly at work during the pastoral expansion of the 1870s until his marriage on 15 January 1880 to Amy Eliza Barrett-Lennard (1852-1897).
Old colonists considered that Alexander was a better bushman than
John, quicker to accept and persevere with risks, though a less careful surveyor. In August-September 1871 he had led a six-man expedition for pastoral country on the
Hampton Plains, forming a favourable impression which did not survive a second reconnoitre in 1876. In 1874 he was second-in-command of
John's second transcontinental expedition, frequently acting as advance scout and proving himself a loyal confidant. Following an important survey of the North-West in 1875, he planned an examination of the remaining unoccupied area in the far north of Western Australia. In March 1879, accompanied by his brother Matthew (1857-1884) and six other men, he began a six-month exploration which resulted in the discovery and naming of the
Kimberley district, the Margaret and Ord rivers, the King Leopold ranges, and a vast tract of
well-watered pastoral country on the Fitzroy and Ord rivers. There were privations; much valuable time was spent in fruitless attempts to penetrate the Leopolds, so that the expedition ended in a desperate dash to the security of the
Overland Telegraph Line. Yet
Forrest could boast the discovery of a land of good grass and water, promising prospects for gold and tropical agriculture, and Aboriginals who showed no hostility. It became a magnet for squatters and investors.