Michael Francis "Frank" Troy (13 October 1877 – 7 January 1953) was an Australian politician who served in 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 1904 to 1939. A member of the Labor Party, he was the

Speaker of the Legislative Assembly Speaker of the Legislative Assembly is a title commonly held by Speaker (politics), presiding officers of parliamentary bodies styled Legislative Assembly, legislative assemblies. The office is most widely used in state and territorial legislatures ...

from 1911 to 1917, the first from that party to hold the position. Later in his career, Troy spent long periods as a

frontbencher In many parliaments and other similar assemblies, seating is typically arranged in banks or rows, with each political party or caucus grouped together. The spokespeople for each group will often sit at the front of their group, and are then kn ...

, serving as a minister in the

first First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and second Collier governments, and then in the Willcock government (where he was

deputy premier A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

). After leaving parliament, he served as Agent-General for Western Australia from 1939 to 1947.

Early life and business career

Troy's parents were Ellen (née Maloney) and Patrick Troy, both Irish Catholic immigrants from

County Tipperary County Tipperary ( ga, Contae Thiobraid Árann) is a county in Ireland. It is in the province of Munster and the Southern Region. The county is named after the town of Tipperary, and was established in the early 13th century, shortly after th ...

. He was born at

Pimlico Pimlico () is an area of Central London in the City of Westminster, built as a southern extension to neighbouring Belgravia. It is known for its garden squares and distinctive Regency architecture. Pimlico is demarcated to the north by London V ...

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

, the locality on the

Richmond River The Richmond River is a river situated in the Northern Rivers region of New South Wales, Australia. Course and features The river rises at the northern end of the Richmond Range, near its junction with the McPherson Range, on the Queensla ...

(near Ballina) where his father's farm was located.Black, David, and Bolton, Geoffrey (1990).
Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia: Volume One (1870–1930)
'', p. 195. Troy's father died when he was very young, and his mother subsequently moved her ten children to the nearby town of Wardell, where she ran a store. Initially training as a schoolteacher, Troy left the profession after only two years, and instead worked various jobs in the country. He arrived in Western Australia in 1897 with the intention of prospecting for gold in the colony's Murchison region. There, he became involved in the local trade union movement, serving in leadership roles with both the

Australian Workers' Union The Australian Workers' Union (AWU) is one of Australia's largest and oldest trade unions. It traces its origins to unions founded in the pastoral and mining industries in the 1880s and currently has approximately 80,000 members. It has exerci ...

(AWU) and the Amalgamated Workers' Association (AWA) at various stages. Troy quickly rose to become secretary of the Murchison district AWA branch, succeeding John Holman (who had entered parliament).

Parliamentary career

Early years and speakership

At the 1904 state election, Troy contested the seat of Mount Magnet for the Labor Party. A resident of Cue at the time of his nomination, his only opponent was a mine manager from the

Mount Magnet Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

townsite, who was a Ministerialist (a supporter of

the government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

Walter James Walter may refer to: People * Walter (name), both a surname and a given name * Little Walter, American blues harmonica player Marion Walter Jacobs (1930–1968) * Gunther (wrestler), Austrian professional wrestler and trainer Walter Hahn (born 1 ...

). Aged only 26 at the election, Troy won with 61.26 percent of the vote, replacing Frank Wallace (who did not re-contest) in parliament. When parliament first met after the election, in August, he was appointed assistant secretary to Frederick Gill for the Labor Party, a position which broadly entailed the duties of a

whip A whip is a tool or weapon designed to strike humans or other animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain. They can also be used without inflicting pain, for audiovisual cues, such as in equestrianism. They are generally e ...

. Later in the year, in November, Troy was also elected to a one-year term as state general secretary of the AWA. Troy again faced only a single opponent at the early 1905 election, which had been pre-empted by the defeat of

Henry Daglish Henry Daglish (18 November 1866 – 16 August 1920) was an Australian politician who was the sixth premier of Western Australia and the first from the Labor Party, serving from 10 August 1904 to 25 August 1905. Daglish was born in Ballarat, V ...

's minority Labor government. Running against a supporter of

Cornthwaite Rason Sir Cornthwaite Hector William James Rason (18 June 1858 – 15 March 1927), better known as Hector Rason, was the seventh Premier of Western Australia. Early life Rason was born in Cleeve, Somerset, in England on 18 June 1858. He was the son ...

's new government, he increased his majority from the previous year, finishing with 66.15% (although on a much lower turnout). Following the election, Troy was made the Labor Party's chief whip, under the new

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

Thomas Bath Thomas Henry Bath, CBE (21 February 1875 – 6 November 1956) was an Australian politician, trade unionist, newspaper editor, writer, and cooperativist. A member of the Labor Party, he served as a Member of the Western Australian Legislative ...

. He (and several other Labor MPs in Goldfields constituencies) went on to be re-elected unopposed at both the 1908 and 1911 elections. Labor, now under the leadership of

John Scaddan John Scaddan, CMG (4 August 1876 – 21 November 1934), popularly known as "Happy Jack", was Premier of Western Australia from 7 October 1911 until 27 July 1916. Early life John Scaddan was born in Moonta, South Australia, into a Cornish A ...

, won

majority government A majority government is a government by one or more governing parties that hold an absolute majority of seats in a legislature. This is as opposed to a minority government, where the largest party in a legislature only has a plurality of seats. ...

for the first time in 1911, and put forward Troy as their candidate for speaker, who was elected unanimously. The first speaker from the Labor Party, Troy was only 34 when he assumed the speakership, making him, according to a later source, "the youngest member of any Australian parliament to hold that office"."DEATH OF MR. M. F. TROY AFTER LONG ILLNESS"
– ''The West Australian'', 8 January 1953. Like almost all future Labor speakers, Troy shunned some of the regalia normally associated with the speakership, first not wearing the traditional wig, and then also dispensing with the gown. On at least one occasion, he also ceased use of the

ceremonial mace A ceremonial mace is a highly ornamented staff of metal or wood, carried before a sovereign or other high officials in civic ceremonies by a mace-bearer, intended to represent the official's authority. The mace, as used today, derives from the or ...

, which was not received favourably. Nonetheless, Troy was re-elected speaker unanimously after the 1914 election, with his conduct praised by the leaders of all three major parties – Labor's Scaddan, 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 Frank Wilson, and the Country Party's James Gardiner. At the election, he had been returned unopposed to his seat for a third consecutive time. After the defeat of the Labor government in July 1916, with Frank Wilson becoming premier for a second time, Troy initially continued on as speaker. However, he stepped down from the post in February 1917, in what he described as "purely a voluntary step", and was replaced by the Country Party's

Edward Johnston Edward Johnston, CBE (11 February 1872 – 26 November 1944) was a British craftsman who is regarded, with Rudolf Koch, as the father of modern calligraphy, in the particular form of the broad-edged pen as a writing tool. He is most famo ...

."MR E. B. JOHNSTON ELECTED SPEAKER."
– ''Great Southern Leader'' ( Pingelly), 16 February 1917.

Front bench

Later life and death

Troy died in

Mount Lawley Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, C ...

, the Perth suburb in which he had long been resident, in January 1953, after a long illness. He had married Flora Brown Mackinnon in April 1913, when he was 35. It was the first marriage for both of them (she being several years older than him), and the couple never had children, with Flora Troy dying just over a year before her husband.

Notes

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Troy, Frank 1877 births 1953 deaths Agents-General for Western Australia Australian gold prospectors Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Western Australia Australian people of Irish descent Australian trade unionists Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery Deputy Premiers of Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly People from the Northern Rivers Speakers of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly