John Lemmon

Who was John Lemmon?

John Lemmon was an Australian politician. He served the longest ever term as a member of the Victorian Parliament, being an MLA for over fifty years.

Born in Carlton to English wood turner Samuel Lemmon and his Irish wife Matilda Thompson, he attended Rathdowne St Primary School, the Trades Hall School and then Workingmen's College. He was a carpenter for five years and then a cutter, joining the Timber Workers' Union at the age of fifteen. On 25 April 1905 he married Edith Ruddock, with whom he had three children. In 1904 he was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly as the Labor member for Williamstown. In December 1913 he was briefly Minister of Public Instruction and Labour, serving again from July to November 1924 and from May 1927 to November 1928. In December 1929 he resumed his old post, serving until March 1932. He was the secretary of the Parliamentary Labor Party from 1913 to 1938. Lemmon held the seat until 1955; his term was the longest of any member of the Victorian Parliament. He died of cancer later that year at Hawthorn.

His son, Nelson Lemmon, later became a federal minister.