Charles Culley
Encyclopedia
Charles Ernest Culley CMG
(16 April 1877 – 10 June 1949) was an Australian politician who was elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly
and the Australian House of Representatives
.
Culley was born at Broadmarsh, near Brighton
, Tasmania and attended primary school. He worked in stables and was occasionally a jockey. He later worked as a miner at Broken Hill
, Beaconsfield
and Tullah
and married Mary Jane Pope, in 1906. He was elected secretary of the Amalgamated Miners' Association in 1912. He moved to Hobart
in 1913 and became prominent in the union movement. He was president of the Hobart Trades Hall Council
for most of the period from 1934 to 1944.
for the Australian Labor Party
at the 1922 election. He lost his seat in the 1928 state election, but won the federal seat of Denison
at the 1928 federal election
. When Joseph Lyons
resigned from the Scullin
in March 1931, Culley became Assistant Minister for Transport and War Service Homes in the Scullin Ministry
, but in June he resigned in protest at cabinet
's support for the fiscally-conservative Premiers' Plan to deal with the Great Depression
. He lost his seat at the 1931 election
. In 1934, he was elected to the state seat of Denison. He was chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works from 1934 to 1943. He was minister for mines from 1942 to 1943 and then chief secretary and minister for transport. In 1946, he did not seek re-election to the ministry due to his poor health and he retired from parliament in August 1948.
Culley was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George
(CMG) in 1947. He died at the Hobart suburb of New Town
and was survived by his wife, a daughter and four sons.
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(16 April 1877 – 10 June 1949) was an Australian politician who was elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly
Tasmanian House of Assembly
The House of Assembly, or Lower House, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of Tasmania in Australia. The other is the Legislative Council or Upper House...
and the Australian House of Representatives
Australian House of Representatives
The House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house; the upper house is the Senate. Members of Parliament serve for terms of approximately three years....
.
Culley was born at Broadmarsh, near Brighton
Brighton, Tasmania
Brighton is a suburb 27km north of Hobart, in Tasmania, Australia. It lies between Pontville and the outer Hobart suburb of Bridgewater on the Midland Highway. At the 2006 census, Brighton had a population of 3,145.-History:...
, Tasmania and attended primary school. He worked in stables and was occasionally a jockey. He later worked as a miner at Broken Hill
Broken Hill, New South Wales
-Geology:Broken Hill's massive orebody, which formed about 1,800 million years ago, has proved to be among the world's largest silver-lead-zinc mineral deposits. The orebody is shaped like a boomerang plunging into the earth at its ends and outcropping in the centre. The protruding tip of the...
, Beaconsfield
Beaconsfield, Tasmania
Beaconsfield is a town near the Tamar River, in the north-east of Tasmania, Australia. It lies 40 kilometres north of Launceston on the West Tamar Highway. It is part of the Municipality of West Tamar...
and Tullah
Tullah, Tasmania
Tullah is a town in the northern part of the West Coast Range, on the west coast of Tasmania, about 111 km south of Burnie. The town has a population of roughly 270 people. At the 2006 census, Tullah had a population of 195....
and married Mary Jane Pope, in 1906. He was elected secretary of the Amalgamated Miners' Association in 1912. He moved to Hobart
Hobart
Hobart is the state capital and most populous city of the Australian island state of Tasmania. Founded in 1804 as a penal colony,Hobart is Australia's second oldest capital city after Sydney. In 2009, the city had a greater area population of approximately 212,019. A resident of Hobart is known as...
in 1913 and became prominent in the union movement. He was president of the Hobart Trades Hall Council
Tasmanian Trades & Labor Council
The Tasmanian Trades & Labor Council, also known as Unions Tasmania, is a representative body of trade union organisations in the State of Tasmania, Australia. It is the peak union body in Tasmania, made up of affiliated unions who represent more than 40,000 workers...
for most of the period from 1934 to 1944.
Political career
Culley was elected to the Tasmanian House of Assembly seat of DenisonDivision of Denison (state)
The Electoral Division of Denison is one of the 5 electorates in the Tasmanian House of Assembly. The division is named after Sir William Denison, who was Lieutenant Governor of Van_Diemen's Land 1847-55, and Governor of New South Wales 1855-61. The division shares its name and boundaries with the...
for the Australian Labor Party
Australian Labor Party
The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...
at the 1922 election. He lost his seat in the 1928 state election, but won the federal seat of Denison
Division of Denison
The Division of Denison is anAustralian Electoral Division in Tasmania.The division was created in 1903 and is named for Sir William Denison, who was Lt-Governor of Van Diemens Land 1847-55...
at the 1928 federal election
Australian federal election, 1928
Federal elections were held in Australia on 17 November 1928. All 75 seats in the House of Representatives, and 19 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election...
. When Joseph Lyons
Joseph Lyons
Joseph Aloysius Lyons, CH was an Australian politician. He was Labor Premier of Tasmania from 1923 to 1928 and a Minister in the James Scullin government from 1929 until his resignation from the Labor Party in March 1931...
resigned from the Scullin
James Scullin
James Henry Scullin , Australian Labor politician and the ninth Prime Minister of Australia. Two days after he was sworn in as Prime Minister, the Wall Street Crash of 1929 occurred, marking the beginning of the Great Depression and subsequent Great Depression in Australia.-Early life:Scullin was...
in March 1931, Culley became Assistant Minister for Transport and War Service Homes in the Scullin Ministry
Scullin Ministry
The Scullin Ministry was the twentieth Australian Commonwealth ministry, and ran from 22 October 1929 to 6 January 1932.Australian Labor Party*Rt Hon James Scullin, MP: Prime Minister, Minister for External Affairs, Minister for Industry...
, but in June he resigned in protest at cabinet
Cabinet of Australia
The Cabinet of Australia is the council of senior ministers of the Crown, responsible to parliament. The Cabinet is appointed by the Governor-General, on the advice of the Prime Minister the Head of Her Majesty's Australian Government, and serves at the former's pleasure. The strictly private...
's support for the fiscally-conservative Premiers' Plan to deal with the Great Depression
Great Depression in Australia
Australia suffered badly during the period of the Great Depression of the 1930s. The Depression began with the Wall Street Crash of October, 1929 and rapidly spread worldwide. As in other nations, Australia suffered years of high unemployment, poverty, low profits, deflation, plunging incomes, and...
. He lost his seat at the 1931 election
Australian federal election, 1931
Federal elections were held in Australia on 19 December 1931. All 75 seats in the House of Representatives, and 18 of the 36 seats in the Senate were up for election...
. In 1934, he was elected to the state seat of Denison. He was chairman of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works from 1934 to 1943. He was minister for mines from 1942 to 1943 and then chief secretary and minister for transport. In 1946, he did not seek re-election to the ministry due to his poor health and he retired from parliament in August 1948.
Culley was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(CMG) in 1947. He died at the Hobart suburb of New Town
New Town, Tasmania
New Town is a suburb of the city of Hobart, Tasmania, Australia, located about 4 km north of the central business district of Hobart. One of the city's oldest suburbs, it is now an inner city residential suburb. Many of its streets are lined with Federation style cottages...
and was survived by his wife, a daughter and four sons.