John Richard Arthur Conolly (22 July 1870 – 1 March 1945) was a 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 1897 to 1901, representing the seat of Dundas. He was born in Ireland, lived in Australia from 1884 to 1900, and then spent the rest of his life in South Africa. Conolly was born in County Westmeath, Ireland.John Richard Arthur Conolly
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 2 June 2016. His father was

John Augustus Conolly Lieutenant Colonel John Augustus Conolly VC (30 May 1829 – 23 December 1888), born in Celbridge, County Kildare, Ireland, was an Irish recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the e ...

, a

Victoria Cross The Victoria Cross (VC) is the highest and most prestigious award of the British honours system. It is awarded for valour "in the presence of the enemy" to members of the British Armed Forces and may be awarded posthumously. It was previously ...

recipient. He arrived in Australia at a young age, having run away from school, and initially worked as a drover, stockman, and

opal Opal is a hydrated amorphous form of silica (SiO2·''n''H2O); its water content may range from 3 to 21% by weight, but is usually between 6 and 10%. Due to its amorphous property, it is classified as a mineraloid, unlike crystalline form ...

miner. Conolly came to Western Australia in 1893, during the

gold rushes A gold rush or gold fever is a discovery of gold—sometimes accompanied by other precious metals and rare-earth minerals—that brings an onrush of miners seeking their fortune. Major gold rushes took place in the 19th century in Australia, New Ze ...

, and worked as a prospector and gold miner in Coolgardie. He later moved on to Norseman and then to Esperanace, and established farms on some of the islands of the

Recherche Archipelago The Archipelago of the Recherche, known locally as the Bay of Isles, is a group of 105 islands, and over 1200 "obstacles to shipping", off the south coast of Western Australia. The islands stretch from east to west and to off-shore encom ...

. At the 1897 general election, Conolly stood for the newly created seat of Dundas as an opponent of the government of John Forrest, and was elected with 40.4 percent of the vote. However, in December 1899, he volunteered to serve in the

Boer War The Second Boer War ( af, Tweede Vryheidsoorlog, , 11 October 189931 May 1902), also known as the Boer War, the Anglo–Boer War, or the South African War, was a conflict fought between the British Empire and the two Boer Republics (the Sou ...

, enlisting in the West Australian Mounted Infantry. He was joined by one other member of parliament, Frank Wallace (the member for Yalgoo)."Local and General"
''The Norseman Times'', 30 December 1899. Although not in the country, Conolly remained an MP until the 1901 state election, when he was replaced by Albert Thomas. He was discharged from the military in March 1901, and remained in South Africa, farming in the

Transvaal Transvaal is a historical geographic term associated with land north of (''i.e.'', beyond) the Vaal River in South Africa. A number of states and administrative divisions have carried the name Transvaal. * South African Republic (1856–1902; af, ...

(near Barberton). Conolly eventually retired to

Johannesburg Johannesburg ( , , ; Zulu and xh, eGoli ), colloquially known as Jozi, Joburg, or "The City of Gold", is the largest city in South Africa, classified as a megacity, and is one of the 100 largest urban areas in the world. According to Dem ...

, where he died in March 1945, aged 74.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Conolly, John 1870 births 1945 deaths Australian emigrants to South Africa Australian military personnel of the Second Boer War Irish emigrants to colonial Australia Irish emigrants to South Africa Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly Politicians from County Westmeath