Harold Seddon
Sir Harold Seddon was an Australian politician who served as a member of the Legislative Council of Western Australia from 1922 to 1954. He was President of the Legislative Council from 1946 to 1954.Early life
Seddon was born in Openshaw, Lancashire, England, to Elizabeth Ann and William Seddon. His nephew, Harold Wilson, served twice as Prime Minister of United Kingdom. After studying electrical engineering at the Manchester Technical Institute, Seddon worked for a period in the electrical department of the Great Central Railway. He emigrated to Australia in 1901, finding employment on the Eastern Goldfields as an electrical engineer with Western Australian Government Railways. Seddon became prominent in the Amalgamated Engineering Union, and also served on the Southern Cross Municipal Council.Politics and later life
After the Labor Party split of 1916, Seddon joined the newly formed National Labor Party. He stood as the party's candidate in the seat of Kalgoorlie at the 1917 state election, but was defeated by the sitting member, Labor's Albert Green. From 1920 to 1922, Seddon served on the Kalgoorlie Municipal Council. He was elected to parliament in May 1922, winning election to the Legislative Council's North-East Province as a Nationalist candidate.
In November 1946, following the death of the President of the Legislative Council, James Cornell, Seddon was elected in his place. He was knighted for his service in June 1951. Seddon served as president until the 1954 election, when he was defeated by Labor's John Teahan. He lived in Kalgoorlie in retirement, dying there in February 1958, aged 76. Seddon had married Winifred Jean Dunstan in 1932, with whom he had two sons and two daughters.
