John Walter Keegan (30 June (?) 1867 – 25 August 1941) was an Australian trade unionist and member of the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...

. Born at

Bulldog The Bulldog is a British breed of dog of mastiff type. It may also be known as the English Bulldog or British Bulldog. It is of medium size, a muscular, hefty dog with a wrinkled face and a distinctive pushed-in nose.Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

to miner John Walter Keegan and Mary, ''née'' Flood, he worked as a local agent for 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 ...

Wyalong Wyalong is part of the Bland Shire located in the Northern Riverina Region of New South Wales, Australia. Established as a gold mining town, it is now a quiet town with historic buildings a few kilometres east of West Wyalong, the major distric ...

in the 1890s. His brother,

Tom Keegan Tom Keegan (born March 22, 1959) is an American sportswriter and author who is sports editor of the Chesterton Tribune, a twice-weekly newspaper in Chesterton, Ind. He was a columnist at the Boston Herald until getting laid off, July 1, 2020. He w ...

, was an organiser for

William Holman William Arthur Holman (4 August 1871 – 5 June 1934) was an Australian politician who served as Premier of New South Wales from 1913 to 1920. He came to office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (New South Wales Branch), Labor Party, ...

and would later become a member of the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament Ho ...

. John was elected to the

in 1925 as a Labor Party councillor. he was also a longtime member and official of the Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners. He moved to Sydney due to his third wife's illness in 1925 and worked for

Sydney Municipal Council The City of Sydney is the local government area covering the Sydney central business district and surrounding inner city suburbs of the greater metropolitan area of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Established by Act of Parliament in 1842 ...

until he fractured his elbow. He supported the Legislative Council's abolition in accordance with party policy and focused on child endowment and workers' compensation in the council. He found work with the Department of Public Works and became a gardener in the

Botanic Gardens A botanical garden or botanic gardenThe terms ''botanic'' and ''botanical'' and ''garden'' or ''gardens'' are used more-or-less interchangeably, although the word ''botanic'' is generally reserved for the earlier, more traditional gardens, an ...

, but in 1927 he was dismissed by Agriculture Minister

Harold Thorby Harold Victor Campbell Thorby (2 October 1888 – 1 January 1973) was an Australian politician. He was a member of the Country Party and served as the party's deputy leader from 1937 to 1940. He represented the Division of Calare (1931–1940) ...

, who allegedly found workers engaged in political business during their shifts. He gradually came to oppose Jack Lang's leadership and did not renominate for the newly reconstituted Council in 1934. He ran for the 1934 federal election as the Federal Labor candidate for

Parramatta Parramatta () is a suburb and major Central business district, commercial centre in Greater Western Sydney, located in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is located approximately west of the Sydney central business district on the ban ...

and for the state seat of Annandale in 1935. He died in 1941.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Keegan, John 1867 births 1941 deaths Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council People from Victoria (state) Politicians from Sydney Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales