William Schey
New South Wales Legislative Assembly
In office
1887–1894
ConstituencyRedfern
In office
1894–1898
ConstituencyDarlington
Personal details
Born5 January 1857
London
Died18 July 1913(1913-07-18) (aged 56)
Woolwich
Political party
Spouse(s)Louisa Charlotte Dorothea Weygang
(married 1880)
Children1 daughter and 2 sons

William Francis Schey (1857–1913) was an Australian politician.

Early life

Schey was born in England and educated in London. After a short time in New Zealand, Schey arrived in Sydney as first mate of a ship in 1875. After tiring of work on the seas, Schey worked as a chainman for the Harbours Department then joined the railways, after becoming the first paid secretary of the Railways and Tramways Association.[1]

Political career

Schey entered the New South Wales Parliament in 1887, serving until his electoral defeat in 1898. Schey initially served as one of four Free Trade members for the Electoral district of Redfern in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.[2] He was not a strong supporter of free trade and had disagreements with the leader Sir Henry Parkes.[3] For the February 1889 election he switched to be a Protectionist, however he was defeated, finishing last on the poll.[2] He was returned to the Legislative Assembly 5 months later, narrowly winning the Redfern by election in July. He had such strong connections with railway employees and the Eveleigh Railway Yards he was dubbed the member for Eveleigh.[3] He was re-elected to Redfern in 1891.[2] Multi-member districts were abolished in 1894, and Schey stood as an Independent Labor candidate for the new district of Darlington, which included the Eveleigh Railway Yards. He returned to the Protectionist party, winning the election in 1895, however he was defeated in 1898.[4] He did not hold ministerial or other office.[5] Schey twice carried the "eight hour" bill through the Legislative Assembly only to see it defeated in the Legislative Council.[1]

Later life

In 1900 Schey was elected Chairman of the Royal Commission to Labor Matters. In 1905 Schey was appointed Director of Labor, a position he held until his death in 1913.[1]

In 1895 Schey was concerned at the social toll of the 1890s depression. Schey was an engine behind the 1896 creation of a Government funded co-operative farm, established to assist men and their families who were victims of sickness and unemployment. Schey took so much interest in the co-operative training farm that the area became favourably known as Scheyville from 1907 onwards.[6][7]

He died at Woolwich on 18 July 1913(1913-07-18) (aged 56).[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Audley, R M. "Schey, William Francis (1857-1913)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISSN 1833-7538. Retrieved 3 March 2018.
  2. 1 2 3 Green, Antony. "Elections for the District of Redfern". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 21 October 2020.
  3. 1 2 "Mr W F Schey MLA". Australian Town and Country Journal. 20 July 1889. p. 12. Retrieved 25 April 2021 – via Trove.
  4. ↑ Green, Antony. "Elections for the District of Darlington". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 16 August 2020.
  5. ↑ "Mr William Francis Schey (1857–1913)". Former members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  6. ↑ "Migrant camp seemed more like an adventure playground for young Joe". The Sydney Morning Herald. 14 May 2011. Retrieved 4 October 2014.
  7. ↑ "The Scheyville Farm". The Sydney Morning Herald. 19 August 1936. p. 10. Retrieved 4 October 2014 – via Trove.

 

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