F. S. Wallis

Frederick Samuel Wallis (22 November 1857 – 13 November 1939) was a trade unionist and politician in the state of South Australia.

Wallis was born at Macclesfield, a son of Richard Wallis (1826 – 21 December 1897), who was for some time connected with H. B. Hanton's jam-making business at Fullarton (later taken over by D. & J. Fowler to become the Lion Preserving Company), Kensington, and the East End Markets. In 1863 his parents moved to Norwood, and Frederick began his schooling under James Cowell, later under Thomas Caterer. (Kent Town in 1883, Victoria street, Goodwood West in 1897).

He began his apprenticeship in the printing trade in 1872, and on completing his indentures joined the South Australian Register as a compositor, simultaneously becoming a member of the Typographical Society (later S.A. Branch of the Printing Industry Employes' Union of Australia).

He was elected father of the Register "chapel" (workplace union branch) in 1884, and left the compositor's frame to take up the position of reader and in the same year was elected president of the Typographical Society.

In 1886, he represented the Typographical Society at the Fourth Intercolonial Trade Union Congress, held at Adelaide. He was, with Andrew Kirkpatrick, a delegate to the second triennial meeting of the Australasian Typographical Union, held in Melbourne. In 1887 he was elected Secretary of the Society, an office he retained for 22 years. His employment with the Register was abruptly terminated in 1888 for his part in a printers' strike. He had recently become a delegate to the Trades and Labour Council and in 1891, as an executive officer of his Society, took part in forming the Legislative Council Elections Committee, which developed into the United Labor Party. In 1892 he represented the printing trade employees before the Shops and Factories Commission and was one of his Society's delegates to the fourth triennial meeting of the Australasian Typographical Union, which was held in Adelaide. He became President of the Trades and Labor Council in 1896, its trustee on the Trades Hall, chairman of the managing committee, and editor of the Trades Hall Review. He became secretary of the Trades and Labor Council in 1897 on the death of John McPherson and held that office for 12 years. For part of the nineties he was employed at The Advertiser. He was involved in the Society's production Centenary History of South Australia.

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