William Joseph Mann (17 October 1875 – 22 April 1951) was an Australian newspaperman and politician who was a member of the Legislative Council 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 1926 until his death, representing South-West Province. Mann was born in

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 ...

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 Mary (née Callow) and William Quick Mann. Having learnt the printing trade in Victoria, he came to Western Australia in 1896, living for periods in

Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is sometimes referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder, as the surrounding urban area includ ...

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, and

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

. Mann eventually moved to

Busselton Busselton is a city in the South West region of the state of Western Australia approximately south-west of Perth. Busselton has a long history as a popular holiday destination for Western Australians; however, the closure of the Busselton ...

, where in 1903 he established what would become the town's main newspaper, the ''South-Western News''. He would remain the proprietor and editor of the publication until 1935. He was also involved with various press organisations, serving as the president of the Australian Provincial Press Association (a forerunner of the

Australian Press Council The Australian Press Council (APC) was established in 1976 and is responsible for promoting high standards of media practice, community access to information of public interest, and freedom of expression through the media. The council is also the ...

) from 1923 to 1925 and also as an Australian delegate to the

Empire Press Union The Commonwealth Press Union (CPU), formerly the Empire Press Union, was an association composed of 750 members in 49 countries, including newspaper groups (with several hundred newspapers), individual newspapers, and news agencies throughout the Co ...

. Standing for the Nationalist Party, Mann was elected to parliament at the 1926 Legislative Council elections, defeating the sitting Country Party member,

Francis Willmott Francis Edward Sykes Willmott (1870 – 29 January 1941) was an Australian politician who was a member of both houses of the Parliament of Western Australia, serving in the Legislative Assembly from 1914 to 1921, and then in the Legislative ...

. He was re-elected in 1932, 1938, and 1946, switching to the newly formed

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 ...

in 1945. Mann died in office in April 1951, aged 75.William Joseph Mann
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 24 June 2016.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mann, William 1875 births 1951 deaths Australian newspaper editors Australian newspaper proprietors Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council Nationalist Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia People from Ballarat 20th-century Australian politicians