Career
Born in Newcastle in England, he received a primary education and migrated to Australia in 1882, where he became a patternmaker and engineer An official with the Engineers" Union, he rose to become Secretary-General of the Labor Federation of Australia. In 1910, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Labor member for Dalley, defeating the sitting Member of Parliament, William Wilks.
He held the seat until his death in 1915.