Taylor, George Cuthbert

Personal

Taylor, George Cuthbert
Birth Date: 14 February 1886 (Warrnambool, Victoria)
Death Date: 2 January 1957 (Brisbane, Queensland)
Parents: William Walker Taylor and Isabella Malcolm (nee Drever)
Family: (2) De facto relationship, Brisbane, 1 son, 1 daughter, (1) Hilda Ward in 1915 at Broken Hill, 1 daughter
Education: Hamilton State School
Religion: Church of England

Career

Clerk, Queensland Tourist Bureau; Employee, engineering firm, Kangaroo Point; Miner, Ballarat and Broken Hill (during 1912 strike); Organiser, Australian Workers Union, Adelaide, 1909 to 1911; Shearer, Victoria, South Australia, New South Wales and Queensland, 1904; Dairy farm employee, Western District; Horse boy for dam contractor, Waranga Basin

Military Service: Great War: Served in 1st AIF, at Gallipoli, 1914 to 1915; He was wounded and subsequently discharged. Returned to Queensland

Parliamentary Representation

House Party Electorate From To Elected/Departure Reason
Assembly ALP Enoggera 11 Jun 1932 29 Oct 1941
Assembly INDL Enoggera 29 Oct 1941 15 Apr 1944

Additional Information

Notes: He joined the Australian Workers Union in 1902. In 1918 he joined the ALP and acquired a reputation a a soapbox orator who spoke on topics, usually involving political theory, economics and rationalism, in great detail and with utmost seriousness. In 1919, Mr Taylor was a participant in the 'Merivale Street riots' in which returned soldiers clashed with Russians and trade unionists. He was one of 15 charged under the War Precautions Act for publicly displaying a red flag at the 'International Socialist' march in contravention of a prohibition made by the then Minister for Defence. His conviction was appealed to the Supreme Court where he was represented by Premier TJ Ryan. The court found for the Commonwealth but on the same day all the prisioners were released under a general amnesty granted to mark the official declaration of peace. His appeal was the beginning of a close friendship with Mr Ryan, which was instrumental in Taylor securing a position in the Public Service as a clerk in the Tourist Bureau. This appointment provided the foundation for his subsequent political career as through the 1920s it provided him with the security to devote more time to politics. President, Australian-Russian Association of Queensland incorporating Medical Aid to Russia Committee; President, Returned Soldiers Labour League; Freemason. On 5 Sep 1941, the Queensland Central Executive ruled that party members might not be members of, or participate in activities of, the Australian-Russian Medical Aid to Soviet Russia Assocation in Queensland. Taylor was the president of the association and GH Marriott (member for Bulimba) was its vice-president. Taylor publicly referred to the QCE decision as 'stupid', claiming the association 'was nothing more than a humanitarian body, striving to bring medical aid to a country fighting nobly against the Germans'. He was expelled by the Executive on 29 Oct 1941. At the 1941 election Mr Taylor stood in the seat of Enoggera as an 'Independent Enoggera Labor' candidate. He stood with GH Marriott on an 'Aid to Russia' ticket.
Sources: Image courtesy of the National Library of Australia, News Article 186483254; Queensland Parliamentary Debates, Motion of Condolence, First session of the 34th Parliament, Vol. 216, 19 Mar 1957, pp. 1516-1517 (Brisbane, Qld: Government Printers); Waterson, DB and John Arnold, A Biographical Register of the Queensland Parliament: 1930-1980, (Canberra: ANU Press, 1982); MG Sullivan, `The Expulsion of George Cuthbert Taylor', Labor in Power: the Labor Party and Governments in Queensland 1915-57, eds DJ Murphy et al, (St Lucia: University of Queensland Press, 1980)
[Last Modified: Monday, 22 October 2018]