Thomas Price
Premier of South Australia
In office 26 July 1905 – 31 May 1909
Monarch	Edward VII
Governor	Sir George Le Hunte Sir Day Bosanquet
Preceded by	Richard Butler
Succeeded by	Archibald Peake
Leader of the Opposition in South Australia
In office 15 July 1904 – 26 July 1905
Preceded by	John Darling
Succeeded by	Richard Butler
Leader of the United Labor Party
In office 12 December 1899 – 31 May 1909
Preceded by	Lee Batchelor
Succeeded by	John Verran
Member of the South Australian House of Assembly
In office 21 April 1887 – 31 May 1909
Preceded by	Josiah Symon
Succeeded by	George Dankel
Constituency	Sturt (1887–1902) Torrens (1902–1909)
Personal details
Born	Thomas Price (1852-01-19)19 January 1852 Brymbo,Wales,United Kingdom
Died	31 May 1909(1909-05-31) (aged 57) Mount Lofty,South Australia
Political party	United Labor Party

Thomas Price (19 January 1852 – 31 May 1909) served as theSouth Australian United Labor Party's firstPremier of South Australia. He formed aminority government at the1905 election and was re-elected with increased representation at the1906 election, serving in the premiership until his death in 1909.^[1] It was the world's first stable Labor government. Shortly afterwards,John Verran led Labor to form the state's first of manymajority governments at the1910 election.

Achievements of the Price government included free state secondary schools, the formation of wages boards and a minimum wage, establishing the Municipal Tramways Trust through nationalisation, the costly administration of the Northern Territory was surrendered to the Federal government, and reform (though limited) of the upper house. The government also attained successive budget surpluses and reduced the accumulated public debt.

Tom Price was born inBrymbo,Denbighshire,Wales in 1852 to John and Jane Price. His family moved toLiverpool in 1853 where Tom grew up.^[2] Tom Price emigrated toSouth Australia with his family in 1883.^[3] He was a stonecutter, teacher, lay preacher, businessman, stonemason and clerk-of-works. As a stonemason, Price helped to build theParliament House of South Australia, a building he would later serve in as an elected politician.^[2][3]

Price quickly became involved intrade union activity, and was elected to theSouth Australian House of Assembly forSturt in April 1893,^[4][1] becoming Labor leader in 1899. He contested the single statewideDivision of South Australia at the1901 federal election as the second of two Labor candidates behindLee Batchelor. The seat elected seven members, Price finished eighth with a 38.2 percent vote.

Price came to power at the1905 state election in aminority government, thePrice-Peake administration, after increasing his party's representation from five to 15 in the 42-member lower house, with a primary vote of 41.3 percent, an increase of 22.2 percent. With the support of eight liberals headed byArchibald Peake, Price forced conservative PremierRichard Butler to resign. Price retained the premiership at the1906 double dissolution election with an additional five Labor seats in the House of Assembly, just two short of a parliamentary majority in their own right, with a primary vote of 44.8 percent, an increase of 3.5 percent. It was the world's first stable Labor government, and was so successful that, following the1910 election, Labor, led byJohn Verran, formed the first of the state's manymajority governments. On Price's death in 1909, Peake formed a minority government until 1910.

Price introduced many reforms, including free state secondary schools, the formation of wages boards, the institution of a minimum wage, and the establishment of theMunicipal Tramways Trust throughnationalisation. The costly administration of theNorthern Territory was surrendered to the Federal government, and there was limited reform of theLegislative Council. Price obtained adouble dissolution on the issue of the reform of the upper house. Nevertheless, the Council continued to be intransigent regarding its reform, and Price accepted its compromise proposal of a £17 householder franchise. Labor's left wing criticised him for the concession.

The Price Government enacted a number of laws relating to social matters: the suppression of brothels and gaming, the control and care of drunkards, and the consolidation of legislation on the supply of alcohol andlocal option in liquor licensing.^[2] The government also achieved successive budget surpluses and reduced the accumulated public debt.^[5]

Price suffered fromdiabetes but died fromtuberculosis of the throat^[6] or lungs^[3] atMount Lofty on 31 May 1909. He was given aState funeral and buried atMitcham Cemetery.

An island of theWhidby Group off the south-west coast ofEyre Peninsula had been left unnamed afterMatthew Flinders' early explorations. It was namedPrice Island by theGovernment of South Australia in his honour. A guiding light for mariners was also erected on the island.^[7]

In 2015 a biography of Thomas Price was published and the book launch was attended by South Australian politicians from both sides of politics.^[3] At the launch,PremierJay Weatherill labelled Price "a Labor hero".^[3]

In 2019, one hundred and ten years after Price's death, a plaque was officially placed atBrownhill Creek Recreation Park in his honour.^[8]

Price married Anne Elizabeth Lloyd (c.1860 – 1 September 1950) on 14 April 1881 at St David's Welsh Church of England inLiverpool.^[2] Anne played an active role in Price's election campaigns^[9] She was a member of theWoman's Christian Temperance Union for many years.^[9]

After Price's death, Anne was one of four women appointed aJustice of the Peace in 1915, the first in Australia.^[10] She considered her duties as a JP an important privilege.^[9] She was invited to sit on the Bench, in an unofficial capacity, at the local court by the commissionerJames George Russell, and she was the first woman to do so.^[9] Due to an accident while on a trip to Britain, Anne withdrew from taking an active part in public life in 1925.^[9]

Price and Ann had seven children.

• John Lloyd Price (14 February 1882 – 23 April 1941) MHA for Port Adelaide 1915–1925 and MHR.^[2]
• Edward Hugh Price (1884–1954), engineer with the Harbors Board
• Walter Davies PriceMC (24 March 1886 – 29 July 1944) distinguished soldier and public servant.
• (Thomas) Arthur Price (1888–1942), a railways employee,^[11]
• Annie Mary "Ann" Price (1890–1985), married Ernest A. Pengelley in 1914 in Brisbane.^[12]
• Ada Olive "Olive" Price (1891–1952) married Horace Wicks in 1915.^[13]
• Florence Gwendoline "Flo" Price (1894–1957) married Alfred Charles Clarke in 1920.^[14]

Tom Price was an activeMethodist andFreemason.^[2]

• Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of South Australia
• Premiers of South Australia
• 1852 births
• 1909 deaths
• Colony of South Australia people
• Leaders of the opposition in South Australia
• Welsh emigrants to colonial Australia
• 20th-century deaths from tuberculosis
• Members of the South Australian House of Assembly
• 19th-century Australian politicians
• Tuberculosis deaths in Australia

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