Lewis Ormsby Martin (16 May 1870 – 17 April 1944) was an Australian politician who was a Member for Oxley from 1927 to 1941, Member of the NSW Legislative Assembly from 1927 to 1941, Secretary for Public Works and Minister for Local Government from 1932 to 1939 and Minister for Justice from 1932 to 1939.

Life

He was born on 16 May 1870 in

Bairnsdale Bairnsdale (locally ) (Gunai language, Ganai: ''Wy-yung'') is a city in East Gippsland, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, situated in a region traditionally inhabited by the Tatungalung clan of the Gunaikurnai people. The estimated popu ...

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

, to miner Robert Martin and his wife Antoinette Louisa. While Lewis was still young the family moved to

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

. Here he was educated privately by a tutor, W. Compton. He was articled a solicitor's clerk in 1889, and studied at the

University of Sydney The University of Sydney (USYD) is a public university, public research university in Sydney, Australia. Founded in 1850, it is the oldest university in both Australia and Oceania. One of Australia's six sandstone universities, it was one of the ...

, receiving a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

in 1893 and a

Bachelor of Law A Bachelor of Laws (; LLB) is an undergraduate law degree offered in most common law countries as the primary law degree and serves as the first professional qualification for legal practitioners. This degree requires the study of core legal subje ...

in 1895, the year he was admitted as a solicitor. He settled in

Taree Taree () is a city on the Mid North Coast, New South Wales, Australia. It and nearby Cundletown were settled in 1831 by William Wynter. Since then it has grown to a population of 26,381, and commands a significant agricultural district. Situ ...

, where he accumulated several properties. In 1900 he married Lucy Danvers, with whom he had eight children. He died at Taree on 17 April 1944.

Career

He served on Taree Council from 1906 to 1928, with periods as mayor from 1911 to 1913. A member of the

Farmers' and Settlers' Association of New South Wales The Farmers' and Settlers' Association of New South Wales (F&S) was an umbrella organisation of farmers' and selectors' associations in New South Wales, founded in 1893. In August 1961, United Farmers' and Woolgrowers' Association of New South Wal ...

, he moved politically from the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

to the Progressive Party before being elected as a

Nationalist Nationalism is an idea or movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, it presupposes the existence and tends to promote the interests of a particular nation,Anthony D. Smith, Smith, A ...

member of the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament House ...

in 1927, representing Oxley. He was Secretary for Public Works, Minister for Local Government and

Minister for Justice A justice ministry, ministry of justice, or department of justice, is a ministry or other government agency in charge of the administration of justice. The ministry or department is often headed by a minister of justice (minister for justice in a ...

from 1932 to 1939. Martin was defeated by an

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...

candidate in 1941.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Lewis 1870 births 1944 deaths Nationalist Party of Australia members of the Parliament of New South Wales United Australia Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly People from Bairnsdale University of Sydney alumni Australian solicitors New South Wales local councillors People from Taree Ministers for justice (New South Wales)