John Travers (New South Wales politician)

John Travers MLC

John Travers (1866 – 16 April 1943) was an Irish-born Australian politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council from 1908 to 1934.[1] He was a Labor member when appointed but later resigned to sit as an independent.[2]

Early life

He was born in Cork to sea captain John Travers and Ellen McCarthy.[a] He migrated to Australia and became a shipwright, serving as secretary of the Shipwrights Provident Union of New South Wales from around 1892 until his appointment to the Legislative Council in 1908.[1][5][6][7] He served as president of the Eight Hour Day Committee and was a member of the central executive of the Labor Party from 1907,[1] until March 1908 when he resigned due to his inability to regularly attend meetings.[8]

Legislative Council

Travers was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Council, appointed in 1908,[9] and serving until 1934.[1] He was a Labor member when appointed by the Wade Liberal government,[10][11] however he did not sign the Labor pledge until 1911.[2][12] He was still a Labor member in January 1913,[13] however he resigned from the party some time prior to 1921.[2][12][14] In 1926 he voted against the Lang Labor government's bill to abolish the Legislative Council.[15]

He was a member of the Legislative Council's Public Works Committee for twenty years.[1][3] He did not seek re-election when the Legislative Council was reconstituted to end life appointments in 1934.[16]

Later life and death

Travers was a member of the board of directors of the Illawarra and South Coast Steam Navigation Company from 1920 until his death in 1943.[17][18] He was a member of the board of directors of Sydney Hospital from 1913 until 1938, the last 11 years as its president.[1][4]

He died at Crows Nest in 1943 (aged 71–77)[a] and was buried at Waverley Cemetery.[1][4]

Notes

  1. ^ a b His parliamentary biography states he was born in 1866,[1] while his obituaries state he was born in 1871.[3][4]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h "Mr John Travers (1866-1943)". Former members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 10 May 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "Playing with fire". The Daily Telegraph. 19 January 1926. p. 1. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.
  3. ^ a b "Former M.L.C. dead". The Sydney Morning Herald. 20 April 1943. p. 7. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.
  4. ^ a b c "Former M.L.C. dead". Daily Commercial News and Shipping List. 21 April 1943. p. 2. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.
  5. ^ "News brevities from every State". Guinea Gold. 22 April 1943. p. 2. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.
  6. ^ "Shipwrights' Provident Union of New South Wales". The Sydney Morning Herald. 8 October 1892. p. 7. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.
  7. ^ "Legislative Council". Goulburn Evening Penny Post. 9 July 1908. p. 2. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.
  8. ^ "Executive meeting". The Worker. 19 March 1908. p. 8. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via Trove.
  9. ^ "Appointments to the Legislative Council (85)". Government Gazette of the State of New South Wales. 16 July 1908. p. 3899. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via Trove.
  10. ^ "Mr. John Travers, M.L.C." The Evening News. 9 July 1908. p. 3. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via Trove.
  11. ^ "Mr. Travers congratulated". The Australian Star. 10 July 1908. p. 5. Retrieved 15 August 2021 – via Trove.
  12. ^ a b "Mr. Travers' reply". The Sydney Morning Herald. 19 January 1926. p. 11. Retrieved 14 August 2021 – via Trove.
  13. ^ "The Labor conference". Singleton Argus. 30 January 1913. p. 4. Retrieved 14 August 2021 – via Trove.
  14. ^ "Mr F. H. Bryant, M.L.C." The Australian Worker. 1 September 1921. p. 12. Retrieved 8 August 2021 – via Trove.
  15. ^ "Constitution (Amendment) Bill (No. 2)" (pdf). Parliamentary Debates (Hansard). New South Wales: Legislative Council. 23 February 1926. pp. 319–321. Retrieved 8 August 2021.
  16. ^ "Death of John Travers". The Sun. 19 April 1943. p. 5. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.
  17. ^ "Registered companies". Daily Commercial News And Shipping List. 3 November 1920. p. 5. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.
  18. ^ "Company Reports". The Age. 14 July 1943. p. 4. Retrieved 13 August 2021 – via Trove.