Maynard Boyd Dawkins (2 January 1917 – 21 October 1996)
was a sheep breeder, choirmaster and politician in the State of
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
.
History
Dawkins was born in
Stirling West the only son of Albert Maynard Dawkins of
Gawler River and his wife Mary (née Yeoman). The Dawkins family were early settlers of Gawler, and well known in the area.
He studied at Roseworthy Agricultural College, where his father was a board member, He was, like fellow parliamentarian
Leslie Rupert Hart, a breeder of
Dorset Horn
The Dorset Horn is an endangered British breed of domestic sheep. It is documented from the seventeenth century, and is highly prolific, sometimes producing two lambing seasons per year. Among British sheep, it is the only breed capable of bre ...
sheep.
He was president of the Gawler Men's Branch of the
Liberal and Country League
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and ...
, and was a successful Liberal candidate for a Midland seat on the
Legislative Council in March 1962, successfully made the transition to the new Legislative Council in July 1975 when, by the Act of 1973, the State reverted to voting as one electorate, with proportional representation. He retired in November 1982.
Other interests
Dawkins was a
teetotaller
Teetotalism is the practice or promotion of total personal abstinence from the psychoactive drug alcohol, specifically in alcoholic drinks. A person who practices (and possibly advocates) teetotalism is called a teetotaler or teetotaller, or is ...
; an active member of the
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
Church and the
Band of Hope
Hope UK is a United Kingdom Christian charity based in London, England which educates children and young people about drug and alcohol abuse. Local meetings started in 1847 and a formal organisation was established in 1855 with the name The United ...
; following a long family tradition.
He was a fine
bass-baritone
A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing thr ...
, a member of the Adelaide Philharmonic Choir, who studied under Clifford Lathlean, and conductor of the notable Gawler Choral Society.
Personal
He married Constance Lilian Wilkinson on 24 August 1943. A son,
John Dawkins
John Sydney "Joe" Dawkins, AO (born 2 March 1947) is an Australian former politician who was Treasurer in the Keating Labor government from December 1991 to December 1993. He is notable for his reforms of tertiary education as Minister for E ...
, born 3 July 1954, followed his father as a member of the Legislative Council from 1997 until 2022. On 8 September 2020, John was elected President of the Legislative Council serving until 19 March 2022.
A nephew also called
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Secon ...
was a politician from the Australian Labor Party and was Federal Treasurer in 1991 to 1993.
References
Members of the South Australian Legislative Council
Australian sheep breeders
1917 births
1996 deaths
Liberal and Country League politicians
20th-century Australian politicians
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