Henry Daglish facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Henry Daglish
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| 6th Premier of Western Australia | |
| In office 10 August 1904 – 25 August 1905 |
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| Monarch | Edward VII |
| Governor | Sir Frederick Bedford |
| Preceded by | Sir Walter James |
| Succeeded by | Hector Rason |
| Colonial Treasurer | |
| In office 10 August 1904 – 25 August 1905 |
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| Premier | Himself |
| Preceded by | Hector Rason |
| Succeeded by | Hector Rason |
| Minister for Education | |
| In office 10 August 1904 – 7 June 1905 |
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| Premier | Himself |
| Preceded by | Walter Kingsmill |
| Succeeded by | Thomas Bath |
| Leader of the Opposition | |
| In office 25 August 1905 – 27 September 1905 |
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| Premier | Hector Rason |
| Preceded by | New office |
| Succeeded by | William Johnson |
| Leader of the Labor Party in Western Australia | |
| In office 8 July 1904 – 27 September 1905 |
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| Preceded by | Robert Hastie |
| Succeeded by | William Johnson |
| Minister for Works | |
| In office 16 September 1910 – 3 October 1911 |
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| Premier | Frank Wilson |
| Preceded by | Frank Wilson |
| Succeeded by | William Johnson |
| Member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly for Subiaco | |
| In office 24 April 1901 – 3 October 1911 |
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| Preceded by | New seat |
| Succeeded by | Bartholomew James Stubbs |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 18 November 1866 Ballarat, Victoria, British Empire |
| Died | 16 August 1920 (aged 53) Subiaco, Western Australia, Australia |
| Resting place | Karrakatta Cemetery |
| Nationality | British subject |
| Political party | Labor (1901–1905) |
| Other political affiliations |
Independent Labour (1905–1908) Liberal (1908–1911) |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 2 |
| Parents | William Daglish Mary Ann (née James) |
| Alma mater | University of Melbourne |
| Occupation | Mechanical engineer, public servant, trade union official, real estate agent |
Henry Daglish (born 18 November 1866 – died 16 August 1920) was an Australian politician. He became the sixth premier of Western Australia and the first from the Labor Party. He served as Premier from 10 August 1904 to 25 August 1905.
Daglish was born in Ballarat, Victoria. He studied at the University of Melbourne and first worked as a mechanical engineer. Later, he joined the public service in Victoria. After moving to Subiaco, Western Australia, he worked for the Western Australian Police.
In 1900, Daglish was elected to the Subiaco Municipal Council. The next year, he became a member of the Western Australian Legislative Assembly for the new area of Subiaco. He was one of only six Labor members at the time. He also served as mayor of Subiaco from 1902.
In the 1904 state election, the Labor Party won the most seats. Daglish became the party's leader. He then became Premier, taking over from Walter James. During his time as Premier, he also held roles as Colonial Treasurer and Minister for Education. His government passed a new Public Service Act. Daglish resigned as Premier in August 1905 after his plan to buy the Midland Railway Company did not pass parliament.
After being Premier, Daglish left the Labor Party and became an independent politician. He served again as Mayor of Subiaco. He was also Minister for Works in a Liberal government. He lost his seat in parliament in 1911. The Daglish railway station and the suburb of Daglish, Western Australia are named after him.
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Growing Up and Early Career
Henry Daglish was born in Ballarat, Victoria, on 18 November 1866. His father, William Daglish, was an engine driver. Henry went to school in Geelong and later attended the University of Melbourne.
In 1882, he started an apprenticeship as a mechanical engineer. However, a year later, he changed careers. He became a clerk in the Victorian Police Department.
On 20 August 1894, Henry married Edith May Bishop in Carlton, Victoria. They had one son and one daughter.
Henry became interested in the Australian labour movement, which worked to improve conditions for workers. By 1895, he was the secretary of the United Public Service Association. He also worked as an auctioneer and accountant.
In 1895 and 1896, Daglish was part of the National Anti-Sweating League. This group fought against poor working conditions and low pay. In 1896, he tried to get elected to the Victorian Parliament but did not win.
Later that year, Daglish moved to Western Australia (WA). He settled in Subiaco, Western Australia, a suburb near Perth. He got a job as an assistant to the chief clerk in the WA Police Department. He later left that job to work as an auctioneer and accountant again.
Starting in Politics
In November 1899, Daglish tried to join the Subiaco Municipal Council but was not successful. The next year, he was elected to the council without anyone running against him. His term started on 1 December 1900.
In 1901, Daglish left his public service job. He decided to run for parliament as a Labor Party candidate. He ran for the new area of Subiaco in the Western Australian Legislative Assembly.
In the 1901 Western Australian state election on 24 April, Daglish won his seat with a very large number of votes. He became the whip for the Labor Party. At that time, the Labor Party only had seven members in parliament. Daglish resigned from the Subiaco Municipal Council on 1 May 1901.
During his first time in parliament, Daglish achieved some important things. He helped pass a rule for an eight-hour working day for railway workers. He also stopped money from being spent to bring public servants from England. Instead, he wanted that money to help Western Australian workers bring their families from other Australian states. He also supported giving land to people and creating pensions for older people.
In November 1902, Daglish was elected mayor of Subiaco without anyone running against him. He officially started his role on 1 December 1902. The Premier at the time, Walter James, spoke highly of Daglish. He was re-elected mayor the next year.
Daglish also joined several important boards. In October 1902, he joined the Kings Park Board. In January 1903, he joined the Perth Hospital Board, which looked after the main hospital in Perth. He was also a member of the Lake Monger Board and the Karrakatta Cemetery Board.
In February 1904, the Labor Party held a meeting to decide their goals for the next election. Some of their main ideas were:
- Asking people to vote on whether to get rid of the Legislative Council.
- Creating pensions for older people.
- Making sure the working day was no longer than eight hours.
- Having the government build public works projects.
Becoming Premier of Western Australia
In the July 1904 state election, Henry Daglish was re-elected for Subiaco with a huge number of votes. The Labor Party won 22 seats, which was more than anyone expected. This made them the party with the most seats in parliament. Two new laws helped Labor win more seats. One created new voting areas where Labor was popular. The other made it easier for new people in Western Australia to vote.
On 8 July 1904, the Labor Party chose Daglish as their leader. Newspapers said he was a very good speaker. On 10 August, Daglish successfully proposed a "motion of no confidence" in the government. This meant that parliament no longer supported the current Premier, Walter James. James then resigned.
Governor Frederick Bedford then officially made Daglish the new Premier of Western Australia. Daglish also became the Colonial Treasurer and Minister for Education. He was the first Labor Party Premier in WA's history. At 37 years old, he was also the youngest Premier the state had ever had at that time.
Daglish gave a speech on 23 August that was not very popular. Some Labor supporters felt he was giving up on the party's main goals. He said the state's money situation was bad and that spending needed to be cut. Newspapers joked about his "mark time policy," which meant his government would move slowly.
In his speech, Daglish also suggested a vote on getting rid of the Legislative Council. He proposed a bill to give pensions to people over 60 who had lived in the state for 10 years. He also wanted to introduce a land tax and improve job security for public servants.
The Legislative Council stopped many of Daglish's plans. His government's biggest success was passing a new Public Service Act. He tried twice to pass a bill for a vote to abolish the Legislative Council, but it failed both times.
On 7 June 1905, Daglish changed his cabinet. He made Thomas Bath the Minister for Education, while he remained Premier and Colonial Treasurer. This change caused some disagreement within the Labor Party. However, Daglish won a vote of confidence from his party on 26 June.
After this, the government planned to buy the Midland Railway Company for £1.5 million. This company owned a railway line from Midland Junction to Walkaway. Many people thought the price was too high. Daglish could not get parliament to approve the purchase on 17 August.
On 22 August, the Daglish government resigned. The state's governor then asked Hector Rason to form a new government. On 25 August, Hector Rason became the new Premier.
After Being Premier
On 27 September 1905, Daglish resigned as leader of the Labor Party. On 4 October, William Johnson was chosen as the new leader. Daglish then left the Labor Party and called himself an Independent Labor politician.
The failure of Daglish's government made the Labor Party more careful about choosing future leaders and being more disciplined.
On 5 June 1907, Daglish was elected Mayor of Subiaco again. He officially started on 12 June 1907. He was re-elected without opposition in November 1907 but did not run again in 1908.
From August 1907 to September 1910, Daglish was the Chairman of Committees in parliament. From September 1910 to October 1911, he served as the Minister for Works in Frank Wilson's Liberal government.
In the October 1911 state election, Daglish lost his seat in parliament to the Labor candidate Bartholomew James Stubbs. He tried to win the seat back in the 1914 state election but was unsuccessful.
Life Outside Politics
From about 1902 to 1906, Henry Daglish was the president of the Subiaco Football Club. He helped the club get money from the Subiaco Council to build a new playing ground at Mueller Park. This ground later became known as Subiaco Oval. The club moved there in 1908. Daglish was again president of the club in 1911.
From 1912, Daglish worked as a real estate agent. In March of that year, he was appointed as a representative for employers in the Court of Arbitration. He held this job until he passed away.
Death and What He Left Behind
In 1920, Henry Daglish became ill. He traveled to Melbourne for medical treatment and was diagnosed with cancer. He returned to Perth on 12 August 1920 and died at his home in Subiaco four days later, on 16 August 1920. He was buried at Karrakatta Cemetery. He was survived by his wife, Edith, and his two children.
Even though the Daglish government was not remembered much later on, his time as Premier was very important. It marked the beginning of two main political parties in Western Australia: Labor and the Ministerialists (who later became known as Liberals). When Daglish resigned, he became Western Australia's first leader of the opposition.
The Daglish railway station, which opened in 1924, was named after Henry Daglish. The Perth suburb of Daglish, Western Australia, next to the railway station, was also named after him. The house in Subiaco where Daglish lived from 1908 is now a heritage-listed building.
See also
- Daglish Ministry
- Electoral results for the district of Subiaco
