John Charles Meehan (6 February 1864 – 15 February 1930) was an Irish-born Australian politician.
He was born in
Ballyconnell
Ballyconnell () is a town in County Cavan, Ireland. It is situated on the N87 national secondary road at the junction of four townlands: Annagh, Cullyleenan, Doon (Tomregan) and Derryginny in the parish of Tomregan, Barony of Tullyhaw.
Ball ...
to John Meehan and Mary McAdam. He arrived in
Queensland around 1878, working as a woodcutter at
Charters Towers and then as a shearer in the western districts. He was involved in the formation of the Queensland Shearers' and Labourers' Union, and was that body's delegate to the formation of the
Australian Workers' Union (AWU). On 21 July 1890 he married Clara Mary Theresa O'Reilly; they had a son. Meehan moved to
New South Wales around 1895, working as a shearer, miner and drover and as an AWU delegate in
Wilcannia and
Bourke. In 1904 he was elected to the
New South Wales Legislative Assembly as the
Labor member for
Darling
Darling is a term of endearment of Old English origin.
Darling or Darlin' or Darlings may also refer to:
People
* Darling (surname)
* Darling Jimenez (born 1980), American boxer
* Darling Légitimus (1907–1999), French actress
Places Austral ...
. He held the seat until it was abolished in 1913, and he retired from parliament. He then moved to
Ballarat
Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...
, where he became secretary of the AWU's Victoria Riverina branch. From 1927 to 1930 he was assistant secretary of the AWU's
Sydney
Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...
head office. He died in
Woollahra in 1930.
References
1864 births
1930 deaths
Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly
Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales
Irish emigrants to Australia
{{Australia-Labor-NewSouthWales-MP-stub