Lindsay Thorn (7 June 1891 – 13 July 1971) was an Australian politician who was a Country Party 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 1930 to 1959, representing the seat of Toodyay. He was a minister in the government of Sir

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 ...

Early life

Thorn was born in

York, Western Australia York is the oldest inland town in Western Australia, situated on the Avon River, east of Perth in the Wheatbelt, on Ballardong Nyoongar land,King, A and Parker, E: York, Western Australia's first inland town, Parker Print, 2003 p.3. and is t ...

, to Isabella (née Blakiston) and Thomas Henry Thorn. His parents moved to Fremantle when he was a child, where he attended the Fremantle Boys' School. Thorn enlisted in the Australian Imperial Force in 1915, and during the war served in Egypt and France as a driver. He returned to Australia and settled in the Swan Valley, where he became involved with the local wine industry.Lindsay Thorn
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 15 June 2016.

Politics and later life

At the 1930 state election, Thorn was elected to the seat of Toodyay for the Country Party. He replaced

John Lindsay John Vliet Lindsay (; November 24, 1921 – December 19, 2000) was an American politician and lawyer. During his political career, Lindsay was a U.S. congressman, mayor of New York City, and candidate for U.S. president. He was also a regular ...

, who had transferred to the seat of Mount Marshall. In December 1943, Thorn was elected deputy leader of the Country Party under Arthur Watts, replacing William Patrick."COUNTRY PARTY."
''

The West Australian ''The West Australian'' is the only locally edited daily newspaper published in Perth, Western Australia. It is owned by Seven West Media (SWM), as is the state's other major newspaper, '' The Sunday Times''. It is the second-oldest continuous ...

'', 11 December 1943. Following the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

–Country coalition's victory at the 1947 state election, he was elevated to the new coalition ministry as Minister for Lands, Minister for Agriculture, and Minister for Labour. He lost the agriculture portfolio to Hubert Parker in a reshuffle in January 1948, but in October 1949 regained a third title, becoming Minister for Immigration. The McLarty government was defeated at the 1953 election, ending Thorn's time in the ministry. He nearly lost his seat at the 1956 state election, prevailing over an independent candidate by just 63 votes on the

two-candidate-preferred In Australian politics, the two-party-preferred vote (TPP or 2PP) is the result of an election or opinion poll after preferences have been distributed to the highest two candidates, who in some cases can be independents. For the purposes of TPP, ...

count. Just before the election, Thorn had been replaced as deputy leader of the Country Party by

Crawford Nalder Sir Crawford David Nalder (14 February 1910 – 8 December 1994) was an Australian politician who served as Deputy Premier of Western Australia from 1962 to 1971. He was leader of the Country Party in Western Australia from 1962 to 1973. Nalde ...

. He retired from parliament at the 1959 election, with James Craig retaining his seat for the Country Party. Outside of politics, Thorn served for ten years on the state executive of the

Returned Services League The Returned and Services League of Australia (RSL) is a support organisation for people who have served or are serving in the Australian Defence Force. Mission The RSL's mission is to ensure that programs are in place for the well-being, care ...

(RSL). He died in Perth in July 1971, aged 80. He had married twice, firstly to Sarah Olive Neilson, with whom he had four children. He was widowed in 1952, and remarried the following year to Jane Eliza Jones.

References

, - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Thorn, Lindsay 1891 births 1971 deaths Australian Army soldiers Australian military personnel of World War I Australian winemakers Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly National Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia People from York, Western Australia 20th-century Australian politicians

Early life

Politics and later life

See also

References