Harry Hearn (24 October 1890 - 20 March 1956) was an Australian politician and businessman. He was a

Liberal Party of Australia The Liberal Party of Australia (LP) is the prominent centre-right political party in Australia. It is considered one of the two major parties in Australian politics, the other being the Australian Labor Party (ALP). The Liberal Party was fo ...

member of the

Western Australian Legislative Council The Western Australian Legislative Council is the upper house of the Parliament of Western Australia, a state of Australia. It is regarded as a house of review for legislation passed by the Western Australian Legislative Assembly, Legislative A ...

from 1948 until his death, representing

Metropolitan Province An ecclesiastical province is one of the basic forms of Ecclesiastical jurisdiction, jurisdiction in Christianity, Christian churches, including those of both Western Christianity and Eastern Christianity, that have traditional hierarchical struc ...

Biography

Hearn was born at

High Wycombe High Wycombe, often referred to as Wycombe ( ), is a market town in Buckinghamshire, England. Lying in the valley of the River Wye, Buckinghamshire, River Wye surrounded by the Chiltern Hills, it is west-northwest of Charing Cross in London, ...

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (, abbreviated ''Bucks'') is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England and one of the home counties. It is bordered by Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-east, Hertfordshir ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, where he entered the furniture-making trade. He migrated to

Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...

in 1912, and along with his brother Ernest, formed Hearn Bros and Stead Pty Ltd, based out of a converted church in Victoria Park, with each serving as joint managing directors. Their business expanded to become one of the state's most prominent furniture manufacturers, operating a two-acre site at Victoria Park and other factories in West Perth and

Welshpool Welshpool ( ) is a market town and Community (Wales), community in Powys, Wales, historically in the Historic counties of Wales, county of Montgomeryshire. The town is from the Wales–England border and low-lying on the River Severn. The c ...

, and in 1950 expanded into the larger holding company Hearn Industries Ltd. He stepped down as managing director of Hearn Industries in 1954 in favour of his son Noel, but remained a board director. He married Edith Nellie Matheson on 9 September 1914; they had one son and one daughter. He was active in employer organisations, serving as president of the Employers' Federation of Western Australia, the Chamber of Manufactures of Western Australia and the State Furniture Trades Association and acting president of the Australian Council of Employers' Federations. He was state vice-president and Perth branch president of the Liberal Party, founder and president of conservative lobby group the Citizen Rights Association, an honorary commissioner for the Australian Comfort Fund during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, president of the Perth Football Club and patron of the Western Australian Motor Cycling Association. Hearn was elected to the Legislative Council for Metropolitan Province at the 1948 biennial elections, defeating fellow Liberal Sir

Hal Colebatch Sir Harry Pateshall Colebatch (29 March 1872 – 12 February 1953) was a long-serving figure in Western Australian politics. He was a member of the Western Australian Legislative Council for nearly 20 years, the twelfth Premier of Western Aus ...

. He had a number of parliamentary assignments, including as a member of the Joint House Committee from 1950 to 1956, a member of the Select Committee on the Provisions of the Kauri Timber Co Ltd Agreement Bill in 1950, chairman of the Honorary Royal Commission inquiring into the Town Planning and Development Act Amendment Bill from 1951 to 1952 and chairman of the Select Committee on the Workers' Compensation Act Amendment Bill in 1954. Hearn was appointed an Officer of the British Empire in the 1952 Queen's Birthday Honours. In 1954

Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 19268 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. ...

embarked on a royal visit of Australia. The

had been using a pool cue in the Legislative Council instead of a traditional

black rod The usher of the Black Rod is an official in the parliaments of several countries of the Commonwealth of Nations. The title is often shortened to Black Rod, and in some countries, formally known as Gentleman Usher of the Black Rod or Lady Usher ...

. As a result of the visit Hearn paid for the Crown Jewellers to make the black rod as a gift to the Legislative Council that is used today.

Death

He died in office at Roelands in 1956 and was buried at

Karrakatta Cemetery Karrakatta Cemetery is a metropolitan cemetery in the suburb of Karrakatta in Perth, Western Australia. Karrakatta Cemetery first opened for burials in 1899, the first being that of wheelwright Robert Creighton. Managed by the Metropolitan Ce ...

References

{{reflist 1890 births 1956 deaths Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire