People Australia

William Campbell ('Snowy') Templeton (1904-1996) coalminer, Communist and trade union official 

Birth: 4 May 1904 at Stonehouse, Lanarkshire, Scotland, son of Robert Templeton (1874-1918), miner, and Annie Hamilton Cambell (1882-1945). Marriage: 20 September 1935 at Collinsville, Queensland to Ann Gilroy Moir (1918-2011), who had also been born in Lanarkshire, Scotland. They had two sons and two daughters. Death: 1 April 1996 at Noosa, Queensland. 

• Commenced mining at age of 14. Arrived in Queensland aboard the Diogenes on 2 September 1924. Two younger brothers, George Campbell Templeton (1906-1989), and John Campbell Templeton (1909-1996) later followed him to Queensland.
• William went to Collinsville, where he commenced work at the State mine. Became a Communist Party of Australia activist.
• Was surface representative of the Collinsville branch of the Queensland Colliery Employees’ Union and was branch secretary from 1937 to about 1946 (full-time from 1942). Secretary, North Queensland Area Committee at time of 1940 strike for 40-hour week, setting up committees to handle finance, publicity and social functions.
• Relinquished secretaryship to organise first regular milk supply to Collinsville community. Sold milk business in 1948. Eventually able to return to mining in 1950. Active in 1952 staydown strike at Collinsville.
• In 1954 elected Collinsville branch treasurer and assistant-secretary. Moved to Ipswich area in 1955, working at various jobs before getting employment at New Ebbw Vale mine. Becoming member of New Ebbw Vale branch committee, he was active in 1959 staydown strike.
• After mine's closure, worked at Rylance 2 until retirement.

Sources
Pete Thomas, The coalminers of Queensland: a narrative history of the Queensland Colliery Employees Union. Volume 1 Creating the traditions (Ipswich, 1986); Common Cause, 10 October 1986.