Harry Vivian Shearn (28 April 1892 – 21 January 1951) was an Australian politician who was an independent 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 1936 until his death, representing the
seat of Maylands.
Shearn was born in
Guildford, Western Australia
Guildford is a suburb of Perth, Western Australia, 12 km northeast of the city centre within the City of Swan. Guildford was founded in 1829 as one of the earliest settlements of the Swan River Colony. It is one of only three towns in the ...
, to Matilda Anne (née Connolly) and Michael Shearn. He worked for his father's real estate agency after leaving school, and took it over completely following his father's death in 1917. Shearn was elected to the
Perth Road Board
The City of Stirling is a local government area in the northern suburbs of the Western Australian capital city of Perth about north of Perth's central business district. The City covers an area of and has a population of over 223,000, making ...
in 1930, and served as chairman from 1935 to 1936.
[Harry Vivian Shearn](_blank)
Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 5 January 2017. He entered parliament at the
1936 state election, winning Maylands from the
Labor Party's
Robert Clothier
Robert Allan Clothier, DFC (October 21, 1921 – February 10, 1999) was a Canadian stage and television actor most famous for his role as Relic on the CBC television series, ''The Beachcombers''.
Biography
Like many of his contemporaries, ...
.
After the
1947 state election produced a
hung parliament
A hung parliament is a term used in legislatures primarily under the Westminster system to describe a situation in which no single political party or pre-existing coalition (also known as an alliance or bloc) has an absolute majority of legisl ...
, Shearn and another independent,
William Read, gave their support 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 ...
, allowing
Ross McLarty
Sir Duncan Ross McLarty, (17 March 1891 – 22 December 1962) was an Australian politician and the 17th Premier of Western Australia.
Early life
McLarty was born in Pinjarra, Western Australia, the youngest of seven children of Edward McLarty, ...
to form a government. The situation persisted after the
1950 election, albeit with the support of another independent,
David Grayden
David Grayden ( Ives; 25 May 1924 – 9 June 2003) was an Australian politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Western Australia from 1950 to 1953, representing the seat of Nedlands.
Grayden was born in Perth to Ethel May (nà ...
.
Shearn died suddenly in January 1951, aged 58.
"DEATH OF Mr. H. V. SHEARN AFTER SUDDEN ILLNESS"
''The West Australian'', 22 January 1951. He had married Emily Ann Watts in 1918, with whom he had two children, Hartley Vivian (Viv) and Marian (Lorraine).
See also
* Independent politicians in Australia
An independent politician is a person who has served in a political office while not affiliated to any political party. Many of these have either resigned or been expelled from membership in political parties, and some have gone on to form their ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Shearn, Harry
1892 births
1951 deaths
Independent members of the Parliament of Western Australia
Mayors of places in Western Australia
Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly
Politicians from Perth, Western Australia
Western Australian local councillors