Harold Thorby | |
|---|---|
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| Deputy Leader of the Country Party | |
| In office 27 November 1937 – 15 October 1940 | |
| Leader | Earle Page Archie Cameron |
| Preceded by | Thomas Paterson |
| Succeeded by | Arthur Fadden |
| Member of theAustralian Parliament forCalare | |
| In office 19 December 1931 – 21 September 1940 | |
| Preceded by | George Gibbons |
| Succeeded by | John Breen |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1888-10-02)2 October 1888 Annandale, New South Wales, Australia |
| Died | 1 January 1973(1973-01-01) (aged 84) Wahroonga, New South Wales, Australia |
| Political party | Country |
| Spouses | |
| Children | Two daughters |
| Occupation | Grazier |
Harold Victor Campbell Thorby (2 October 1888 – 1 January 1973) was an Australian politician. He was a member of theCountry Party and served as the party's deputy leader from 1937 to 1940. He represented theDivision of Calare (1931–1940) and held ministerial office as Minister for War Service Homes (1934–1936),Defence (1937–1938),Civil Aviation (1938–1939),Health (1940), andPostmaster-General (1940). He lost his seat at the1940 federal election.
Thorby was born on 2 October 1888 inAnnandale, Sydney, New South Wales. He was the son of Elizabeth (née Campbell) and Frederick James Thorby; his mother was Irish and his father English. Thorby grew up with his maternal grandparents inGeurie and attended the local public school before going on toSydney Grammar School. He later acquired his own property in Geurie and studied woolclassing, veterinary science and architecture throughSydney Technical College. He also worked as a construction foreman for his father, whose firm had projects in Sydney andNewcastle. In 1916, he married Vera Lynda Morley and they had two daughters.[1][2]
Thorby was a member of the three-memberelectoral district of Wammerawa in theNSW Legislative Assembly from 1922 to 1927 for theCountry Party. After its division into single-member electorates in 1927 he representedCastlereagh for one term to 1930 until his defeat byJoseph Alfred Clark of theLabor Party. He was the Minister for Agriculture and chairman of the Water Conservation and Irrigation Commission in the government ofThomas Bavin from 1927 to 1930, during which construction of theWyangala Dam commenced, theBurrinjuck Dam was finished and theHawkesbury Agricultural College was enlarged.[1][2]
At the1931 general election, Thorby won the federal seat ofCalare, which he held until 1940. He was a Minister without Portfolio from November 1934 to November 1937 in theLyons government, entitled Assistant Minister for Repatriation (1934–35),Minister for War Service Homes (1935–36) and Assistant Minister for Commerce (1935–37). In November 1937, Thorby was elected deputy leader of the Country Party, defeatingJohn McEwen by a single vote on the second ballot.[3][4] He subsequently served asMinister for Defence from November 1937 to November 1938 and Minister for Works andMinister for Civil Aviation from November 1938. During this period he initiated a program of adding annexes to existing factories to accelerate armaments production, but this program failed to spend even budgeted funds. In April 1939, he left the ministry when the Country Party refused to take part in theMenzies government. With the formation of acoalition government in March 1940, Thorby becameMinister for Health andPostmaster-General.
After his defeat at the1940 election by Labor'sJohn Breen, Thorby ran unsuccessfully for the state seat ofDubbo at the1941 by-election and the federal seat of Calare at the1943 and1946 elections. He returned to farming on his wife's parents property atWongarbon and remained active in the Graziers' Association and the Country Party. Thorby's first wife died in 1958 and he married Alfreda Rogers Smith in 1960. He died at his home in the Sydney suburb ofWahroonga, survived by two daughters from his first marriage.[2]
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Minister for War Service Homes 1934–1936 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for Defence 1937–1938 | Succeeded by |
| New title | Minister for Civil Aviation 1938–1939 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Minister for Health 1940 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Postmaster-General 1940 | Succeeded by |
| New South Wales Legislative Assembly | ||
| Preceded by | Member forWammerawa 1922–1927 Served alongside:Ashford/Clark,Bill Dunn | Abolished |
| New title | Member forCastlereagh 1927–1930 | Succeeded by |
| Parliament of Australia | ||
| Preceded by | Member forCalare 1931–1940 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Deputy Leader of the Country Party of Australia 1937–1940 | Succeeded by |
