John McElhone (16 June 1833 – 6 May 1898) was an Australian politician.
He was born inSydney to milk vendor Terence McElhone and Catherine Mallon. He attended St Mary's Seminary School and was an apprentice seaman from 1851. In 1859 he was a commercial agent, and from 1867 to 1872 he was a merchant dealing with hide and tallow. On 5 February 1862 he married Mary Jane Browne, with whom he had nine children. Two of his sons,William Percy (1871–1932) andArthur Joseph (1868–1946), each served asLord Mayor of Sydney.[1][2]
ASydney City alderman from 1878 to 1882, he was elected to theNew South Wales Legislative Assembly in 1875 as the member forUpper Hunter.[3] In 1882 he was concurrently elected for both Upper Hunter andEast Sydney,[4] resigning from East Sydney shortly after. In 1883 he challengedAdolphus Taylor to resign his seat and both would contest Taylor's seat ofMudgee.[5] McElhone was defeated by Taylor in theMudgee by-election,[6] however he was re-elected at theUpper Hunter by-election held on the same day,[7] with theNewcastle Morning Herald and Miners' Advocate reporting that McElhone had been nominated without his authority.[8] He lost Upper Hunter in 1885,[3] but returned in 1887,[3] retiring in 1889.
Associated with theFree Trade Party, he ran unsuccessfully in 1891,[3] and 1894,[9] before winning election to the seat ofSydney-Fitzroy in 1895.[10]
He died atPotts Point in 1898.[1]
| New South Wales Legislative Assembly | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Member forUpper Hunter 1875–1885 Served alongside:None/John McLaughlin | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member forEast Sydney 1882–1883 Served alongside:Edmund Barton,George Griffiths,George Reid | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member forUpper Hunter 1887–1889 Served alongside:Robert Fitzgerald | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Member forSydney-Fitzroy 1895–1898 | Succeeded by |
