William Johnson (Australian politician)

William James Johnson (1871 – 30 July 1916) was an Australian politician and soldier.

William Johnson
Member of the Australian Parliament
for Robertson
In office
13 April 1910 – 31 May 1913
Preceded byHenry Willis
Succeeded byWilliam Fleming
Personal details
Born1871
Yass, New South Wales
Died30 July 1916 (aged 44–45)
Étaples, France
Cause of deathDied of wounds
NationalityAustralian
Political partyAustralian Labor Party
OccupationCoachbuilder

Born in Yass, New South Wales, he received a primary education before becoming a coachbuilder. He was involved in local politics as a member of Auburn Council. In 1910, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Labor member for Robertson, defeating Henry Willis. He held the seat until 1913, when he was defeated by William Fleming, representing the Commonwealth Liberal Party.[1]

Johnson enlisted as a Private on 14 August 1915[2] and served in the Second Battalion in France. While there, his Division was addressed by then Prime Minister of Australia Billy Hughes and former Prime Minister Andrew Fisher, then serving as Australian High Commissioner to Britain, and Hughes recognised Johnson in the crowd.[3] The former colleagues were seen laughing and reminiscing for some time.[3] Johnson was wounded at Pozières, and died of his wounds in Étaples on 30 July 1916.[4]

References
  1. Carr, Adam (2008). "Australian Election Archive". Psephos, Adam Carr's Election Archive. Retrieved 25 May 2008.
  2. "Johnson, William James", First World War Nominal Roll Page - AWM133, 27-098, Australian War Memorial, http://www.awm.gov.au/research/people/nominal_rolls/first_world_war/page.asp?p=1652237, Accessed 6 September 2010.
  3. Bastian, P. (2009) Andrew Fisher, UNSW Press, Sydney. ISBN 978-1-74223-004-7.
  4. "Commonwealth Members of Parliament who have served in war" (PDF). Parliamentary Library. Retrieved 19 November 2018.
Parliament of Australia
Preceded by
Henry Willis		 Member for Robertson
1910–1913		 Succeeded by
William Fleming
Civic offices
Preceded by
George Ritchie		 Mayor of Auburn
1914–1916		 Succeeded by
Tom Cheetham
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