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Bousen, William Raymond (Ray) (1911–2002)

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William Raymond James (Ray) Bousen (1911-2002) railway employee, trade union leader, parliamentarian 

Birth: 13 January 1911 in Toowoomba, Queensland, son of Queensland-born Sydney Herbert Bousen, engine driver, and Anna Louisa, née Stayte, who had been born in Oxfordshire, England. Marriage: 29 April 1933 in Toowoomba to Doris Evelyn Hooper. They had two daughters. Death: 28 May 2002 in Toowoomba. Religion: Anglican.

  • Educated at Toowoomba North State School and Toowoomba Technical College. Prominent in football and cricket circles in Toowoomba, represented the town in both sports.
  • Railway employee from 1925 to 1952: porter Murphy’s Creek 1926, Haden 1930, Cooyar 1931, Roma 1936, Bundaberg 1938, and Roma 1941; shunter Toowoomba 1941, Cloncurry 1942, Cairns 1943, and Charleville 1946; guard Toowoomba 1946-53.
  • 1925 joined Australian Railways Union (ARU). Involved in 1925 strike, 1927 lock-out and 1948 strike. Chairman Bundaberg sub-branch, where he was particularly successful against the ‘totalitarian tactics of the ruling powers’. Respected as militant among Toowoomba shunting yard employees. District secretary of ARU from 1953 to 1969 and delegate to Queensland Central Executive of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) in 1957. President, Toowoomba Trades and Labor Council from 1957 to 1969. President, Toowoomba Trades Hall Board, from 1958 to 1961, secretary from 1961 to 1969.
  • ALP campaign director State and Federal elections from 1957 to 1969. Member of the Qld Legislative Assembly for Toowoomba West from 1969 to 1972 and for Toowoomba North from 1972 to 1974.
  • Member, Newtown Rugby League Football Club. Life member ARU. Patron, Subnormal Children’s Association. Vice-patron Queensland branch of the Australian Federation of Totally and Permanently Incapacitated Ex Servicemen and Women (TPI) Association.

Sources
D. B. Waterson and John Arnold, A Biographical Register of the Queensland Parliament 1930-1980 (Canberra, 1982); The Advocate, 15 August 1945; Railway Advocate, June 1985, August 1986.

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Citation details

'Bousen, William Raymond (Ray) (1911–2002)', People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/biography/bousen-william-raymond-ray-32478/text40295, accessed 3 February 2023.

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