Date of Birth: 15/02/1854
Place of Birth: Edinburgh, Scotland
Date of Death: 18/07/1936
Place of Death: Lidcombe, New South Wales, Australia
Parliamentary Service
| Member of the NSW Legislative Council |
17 Jul 1917 |
22 Apr 1934 |
16 years 9 months 6 days |
Life Appointments under the Constitution Act: Date of Writ of Summons 6 May 1917. Granted retention of title of 'Honourable' for life. |
| Prevalence of Venereal Diseases Committee No. 7 |
11 Aug 1916 |
21 Dec 1916 |
4 months 11 days |
|
| Prevalence of Venereal Diseases Committee No. 8 |
07 Jul 1915 |
13 Apr 1916 |
9 months 7 days |
|
| Minister for Public Health |
27 Apr 1915 |
15 Nov 1916 |
1 year 6 months 20 days |
|
| Colonial Secretary |
15 Mar 1915 |
15 Nov 1916 |
1 year 8 months 1 day |
|
| Minister for Agriculture |
23 Feb 1915 |
15 Mar 1915 |
21 days |
|
| Library Committee No. 3 |
22 Jul 1914 |
23 Feb 1915 |
7 months 2 days |
|
| Library Committee No. 3 |
11 Mar 1914 |
18 Apr 1914 |
1 month 8 days |
|
| Elections and Qualifications Committee No. 2 |
03 Mar 1914 |
11 Mar 1914 |
9 days |
|
| Member for Namoi |
06 Dec 1913 |
21 Feb 1917 |
3 years 2 months 16 days |
|
| Library Committee No.4 |
06 Aug 1913 |
15 Oct 1913 |
2 months 10 days |
|
| Elections and Qualifications Committee No.2 |
29 Jul 1913 |
15 Oct 1913 |
2 months 17 days |
|
| Seizure of Timber, Plant &c. and Prosecution of James Ambrose Taylor Committee No.13 |
15 Oct 1912 |
04 Dec 1912 |
1 month 20 days |
|
| Library Committee No.4 |
07 Aug 1912 |
05 Dec 1912 |
3 months 29 days |
|
| Elections and Qualifications Committee No.2 |
31 Jul 1912 |
05 Dec 1912 |
4 months 5 days |
|
| Library Committee No.4 |
12 Sep 1911 |
28 Mar 1912 |
6 months 17 days |
|
| Elections and Qualifications Committee No.2 |
30 Aug 1911 |
03 Oct 1911 |
1 month 4 days |
|
| The Governor’s Opening Speech Committee No.1 |
29 Aug 1911 |
29 Aug 1911 |
1 day |
|
| Timber Industry Committee No.15 |
11 Jul 1911 |
01 Aug 1911 |
22 days |
|
| Elections and Qualifications Committee No.2 |
16 May 1911 |
01 Aug 1911 |
2 months 17 days |
|
| Elections and Qualifications Committee No.2 |
24 Nov 1910 |
23 Dec 1910 |
1 month |
|
| Member for Namoi |
14 Oct 1910 |
06 Nov 1913 |
3 years 24 days |
|
| Library Committee No. 4 |
28 Jun 1898 |
08 Jul 1898 |
11 days |
|
| Library Committee No.3 |
28 Apr 1897 |
10 Dec 1897 |
7 months 13 days |
|
| Library Committee No.3 |
14 May 1896 |
16 Nov 1896 |
6 months 3 days |
|
| Library. Committee No. 3 |
20 Aug 1895 |
08 Jul 1898 |
2 years 10 months 19 days |
|
| Member for Sydney-Gipps |
24 Jul 1895 |
08 Jul 1898 |
2 years 11 months 15 days |
|
| Library Committee No. 3 |
29 Aug 1894 |
05 Jul 1895 |
10 months 7 days |
|
| Member for Sydney-Gipps |
17 Jul 1894 |
05 Jul 1895 |
11 months 19 days |
|
| Member for West Sydney |
17 Jun 1891 |
25 Jun 1894 |
3 years 9 days |
|
| Member of the NSW Legislative Assembly |
17 Jun 1891 |
21 Feb 1917 |
25 years 8 months 5 days |
|
Political Party Activity
Founder of the Republican League 1888; Member of the Australian Socialist League from 1890 to 1894. Foundation member of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). However, he refused to take the pledge in 1893 and won a seat as independent Labor in 1894. He rejoined the Party when the pledge was reworded in 1895. He was a member of the central executive in 1901, 1903, 1911 and 1915-1916. He was expelled over conscription in 1916 and dropped from the Ministry and stood as an independent National in 1917.
Qualifications, occupations and interests
Newspaper editor. Educated at Thorburn's School at Leith, Scotland. Matriculated in the Faculty of Arts, Edinburgh in 1871. Transferred to medicine in 1873 but left without graduating in 1877. After arriving in New South Wales in 1878, undertook a variety of occupations, including billiard-marker and country journalist. Settled in Sydney as a journalist and worked as sub-editor of the Bulletin from 1889 to 1891; as editor of the Australian Workman from 1891 to 1892; for John Haynes' Elector, later the Newsletter and as editor of the first 17 issues of the Barrier Truth in 1898; as editor of the Sydney Worker from May 1900 to July 1904; as editor and joint owner (with G W Lavender) of the Radical in 1904; as editor of the Bathurst National Advocate in 1908 and was a contributor to the Sunday Times. Black was the author of the following books: In Defence of Robert Burns, 1901; The Origins and Ethics of Landowning, 1903; History of the NSW Labor Party, 1910; A History of the NSW Political Labor Party 1926- 1929; To perpetuate the Memory of Rosalind Singleton Black....., 1918, An Anzac Areopagus and other verses, 1923; and Arbitration's Chequered Career, 1929.
Membership of other Parliaments & Offices Held
Local Government Activity
Personal
Son of George Stevenson, a messenger-at-arms, and Isabella Muir. Arrived in Victoria, Australia in 1877 and moved to New South Wales in 1878. Had a cohabitation relationship with Georgina Duggan between 1877 and 1891 and had issue 12 children. Married (1) Rosielinn (Rosalind) Clarkson, nee Singleton on 21 June 1894. Married (2) Priscilla Verne Kelly on 11 April 1928 and had issue 3 daughters and 1 son. Presbyterian faith.
Additional Information
Australian Dictionary of Biography, volume seven;
Biographical Register of the New South Wales Parliament 1901 - 1970;
Members of the Legislative Assembly of New South Wales, 1856-1901;
Ken Turner and Michael Hogan (editors), The Worldly Art of Politics, Sydney,
Federation Press, 2006 (Chapter 10: "George Muir Black: Labor publicist", by
Jim Hagan, page 101)
Personal papers in the Mitchell Library, State Library of New South Wales:
George Black - papers, 1874 - 1933, together with letters received, 1913-1919,
by Rosalind Singleton Black (MLMSS 256). George Black - 'History of the New
South Wales Political Labour Party from its conception until 1917, ca.1926
being ts. Manuscript with corrections. (A2562).
