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Herbert John (Herb) George (1872–1957)

This article was published:

Herbert George, n.d.

Herbert George, n.d.

Herbert John (Herb) George (1872-1957) railway engine driver, trade union official and parliamentarian

Birth: 6 June 1872 at Quorn, South Australia, son of Thomas George (1843-1883), born at Llangennech, Carmarthenshire, Wales, and Catherine, née Murphy (1846-1924), born at Cloghscregg, Kilfane, Kilkenny, Ireland. Marriage: 30 January 1918 at Strathalbyn, South Australia, to native-born Ellen Amelia Coonan (1876-1949). They had no children. Death: 4 September 1957 at Beverley, SA. Religion: Catholic. 

  • Engine driver with South Australian Railways.
  • Secretary of the SA Branch of the Federated Union of Locomotive Enginemen from 1912 to 1944.
  • Treasurer and trustee of the Australian Labor Party. President of SA Labor Day Celebrations Committee.
  • Elected to the SA House of Assembly for seat of Adelaide on 21 September 1926. One of seven ALP members who resisted ‘Premier’s Plan’ in 1931-1932. Defeated on 7 April 1933. Re-elected for Adelaide on 8 March 1947 and defeated on 3 March 1950.
  • Cause of death: myocardial degeneration and senility
  • His brother Even Ernest George was also a SA Labor parliamentarian.

Sources
Howard Coxon, John Playford and Robert Reid, Biographical Register of the South Australian Parliament 1857-1957 (Adelaide, 1985); Locomotive Journal, 14 December 1938, 8 May 1947.

Citation details

'George, Herbert John (Herb) (1872–1957)', People Australia, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://peopleaustralia.anu.edu.au/biography/george-herbert-john-herb-34234/text42957, accessed 12 October 2024.

© Copyright People Australia, 2012

Herbert George, n.d.

Herbert George, n.d.

Life Summary [details]

Birth

6 June, 1872
Quorn, South Australia, Australia

Death

4 September, 1957 (aged 85)
Beverley, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia

Cause of Death

heart disease

Cultural Heritage

Includes subject's nationality; their parents' nationality; the countries in which they spent a significant part of their childhood, and their self-identity.

Religious Influence

Includes the religion in which subjects were raised, have chosen themselves, attendance at religious schools and/or religious funeral rites; Atheism and Agnosticism have been included.

Occupation
Key Organisations
Political Activism
Workplaces