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Ernest Charles O'Dea

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Ernest Charles O'Dea
69th Lord Mayor of Sydney
In office
1 January 1949 – 9 December 1952
DeputyJohn James Carroll
Jack Byrne
Preceded byReg Bartley
Succeeded byPat Hills
Member of the New South Wales Legislative Council
In office
23 April 1943 – 22 April 1967
Personal details
Born(1889-02-19)19 February 1889
Armidale, Colony of New South Wales
Died21 November 1976(1976-11-21) (aged 87)
Gladesville, New South Wales, Australia
Political partyALP

Ernest Charles O'Dea (19 February 1889 – 21 November 1976) was an Australian trade union official, Labor Party politician, Lord Mayor of Sydney and Member of the New South Wales Parliament.

Early life

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O'Dea was born in Armidale in 1889 and moved to Sydney with his family as a child.

Career

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O'Dea entered the retail trade and moved rapidly through the trade union ranks whilst in his twenties. He served as a Sydney Municipal Council Alderman for two periods (1924–1927 and 1930–1965) and was elected Lord Mayor of Sydney in 1948 for four years.[1][2] He served two twelve-year terms in the New South Wales Legislative Council between 1942 and 1967. He was also a member of Sydney County Council between 1935 and 1959 and its Chairman from 1958 to 1959.[3]

He was an advocate of compulsory unionism and equal pay, and was an opponent of Saturday retail trading and late-night shopping, all major issues in the 1950s and 1960s. He was a vehement anti-communist and fought against communist influence in trade unions and other industrial organisations.

Later life

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O'Dea died in 1976 at St George Hospital in Sydney, after suffering a cerebral aneurysm in 1966. He was survived by a son from his first marriage and a son and stepdaughter of his second marriage.[4]

Legacy

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O'Dea is remembered by O'Dea Avenue in Zetland[5] and O'Dea Park in Camperdown.

References

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  1. ^ "Ernest Charles O'Dea". Sydney's Aldermen. City of Sydney. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
  2. ^ "Alderman O'Dea Is Lord Mayor". The Canberra Times. Vol. 23, no. 6, 768. Australian Capital Territory, Australia. 15 December 1948. p. 1. Retrieved 4 March 2017 – via Trove.
  3. ^ Ernest Charles O'Dea. Parliament Papers, NSW State Parliament.
  4. ^ "The Hon. Ernest Charles O'DEA (1889 - 1976)". Former members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 30 April 2019.
  5. ^ O'Dea, Ernest Charles Australian Dictionary of Biography, Online Edition. Accessed 2 August 2008.

 

Civic offices
Preceded by Lord Mayor of Sydney
1948 – 1952
Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by
Frank Joyce
Chairman of the Sydney County Council
1958 – 1959
Succeeded by