Everard McDonnell O'Brien (9 April 1907 – 17 August 1971) was an Australian politician who was a Labor Party member of the Legislative Assembly of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

from 1952 to 1959, representing the seat of Murchison. O'Brien was born in Nunngarra, a locality near the town of

Sandstone Sandstone is a clastic sedimentary rock composed mainly of sand-sized (0.0625 to 2 mm) silicate grains. Sandstones comprise about 20–25% of all sedimentary rocks. Most sandstone is composed of quartz or feldspar (both silicates ...

in Western Australia's

Mid West The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

region. He went to school in Mount Margaret, and afterward worked as a labourer and shearer. In the 1930s, he went to live in

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth i ...

, working initially as a labourer and later as a rail and tram conductor. O'Brien returned to the Mid West in the 1940s, prospecting at Big Bell for a period and later serving as secretary of the Yalgoo Road Board. He first ran for parliament at a 1947 Legislative Council by-election for Central Province, but lost to the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

's Harold Daffen.Everard McDonnell O'Brien
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 3 June 2016. O'Brien eventually entered parliament at the 1952 Murchison by-election, which was caused by the death of the sitting Labor member, William Marshall. He was re-elected at the

1953 Events January * January 6 – The Asian Socialist Conference opens in Rangoon, Burma. * January 12 – Estonian émigrés found a government-in-exile in Oslo. * January 14 ** Marshal Josip Broz Tito is chosen President of Yug ...

and 1956 state elections, but at the 1959 election was defeated by the Liberal candidate,

Richard Burt Richard R. Burt (born February 3, 1947) is an American businessman and diplomat who served as United States Ambassador to Germany and was a chief negotiator of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty. Prior to his diplomatic career, Burt worked as ...

. O'Brien remained in Perth after leaving parliament, dying there in August 1971, aged 64. He married twice, and had seven children in total, one of whom, Simon O'Brien, became a

Liberal 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 m ...

member of parliament.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:OBrien, Everard 1907 births 1971 deaths Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly People from the Mid West (Western Australia) 20th-century Australian politicians