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William James George CMG (26 January 1853 – 10 March 1931) was an Australian engineer and politician who served in 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 1895 to 1902 and from 1909 to 1930. He was a minister in the governments of Frank Wilson,
Henry Lefroy Sir Henry Bruce Lefroy (24 March 1854 – 19 March 1930) was the eleventh Premier of Western Australia. Biography Lefroy was born in Perth, Western Australia on 24 March 1854. His father was Anthony O'Grady Lefroy, Colonial Treasurer of Wes ...
, Hal Colebatch, and James Mitchell.


Early life

George was born in
West Bromwich West Bromwich ( ) is a market town in the borough of Sandwell, West Midlands, England. Historically part of Staffordshire, it is north-west of Birmingham. West Bromwich is part of the area known as the Black Country, in terms of geography, c ...
, Staffordshire, England, to Eleanor (née Sheldon) and Henry Wellington George. He studied mechanical engineering at the
Birmingham and Midland Institute The Birmingham and Midland Institute (popularly known as the Midland Institute) (), is an institution concerned with the promotion of education and learning in Birmingham, England. It is now based on Margaret Street in Birmingham city centre. It ...
, and emigrated to Australia in 1884, initially settling in
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 ...
. George moved to Western Australia in 1891, where he initially managed a timber plantation at Jarrahdale. He later opened a
foundry A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal into a mold, and removing the mold material after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals pr ...
in
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 i ...
, and was involved in the construction of the Victoria Dam, as well as the extensions of the Northern Railway to Mullewa and the South Western Railway to Bunbury. In 1894, George was elected to the Perth City Council, serving as a councillor until 1898.William James George
– Biographical Register of Members of the Parliament of Western Australia. Retrieved 9 June 2016.


Politics and later life

George first stood for parliament at the 1894 general election, contesting the seat of Murray. He lost to William Paterson, but after Paterson's resignation the following year he won the resulting by-election. George was re-elected at the
1897 Events January–March * January 2 – The International Alpha Omicron Pi sorority is founded, in New York City. * January 4 – A British force is ambushed by Chief Ologbosere, son-in-law of the ruler. This leads to a puni ...
and 1901 elections, standing as an opponent of the governments of Sir John Forrest and
George Throssell George Lionel Throssell (23 May 1840 – 30 August 1910) was the second Premier of Western Australia. He served for just three months, from 15 February to 27 May 1901, during a period of great instability in Western Australian politics. Geor ...
, respectively. He resigned from parliament in 1902, and was appointed commissioner of railways, serving in that position until 1907, when he was succeeded by John T. Short. At the 1908 general election, George attempted to re-enter parliament in his old seat, but was defeated by the sitting member, John McLarty. However, McLarty died the following year, and George won the by-election occasioned by his death, making him one of the few MPs in Western Australia to win multiple by-elections for the same seat. In 1916, George was appointed Minister for Works in the government of Frank Wilson. He remained Minister for Works when Henry Lefroy replaced Wilson as premier in 1917, and was also made Minister for Water Supply. George retained his portfolios during Hal Colebatch's brief period as premier in 1919, and then under James Mitchell. In 1920, George was responsible for organising the tour of the Prince of Wales (later Edward VIII) to Western Australia, and the following year he was made a Companion of the Order of St George and St Michael (CMG). He remained a minister until the Nationalist Party was defeated at the 1924 state election, and eventually left parliament at the 1930 election. George died in Perth in March 1931, aged 78. He had married Mary Ann Nelson in 1891, with whom he had three sons and a daughter.


See also

*
Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly Following are lists of members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly: {{DEFAULTSORT:Members Of The Western Australian Legislative Assembly ...


References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:George, William 1853 births 1931 deaths Australian Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Australian engineers Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery English emigrants to colonial Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly People from West Bromwich Nationalist Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Western Australia