Thomas Skene
| Thomas Skene | |
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| Member of the Australian Parliament for Grampians |
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In office 29 March 1901 – 8 November 1906 |
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| Preceded by | New seat |
| Succeeded by | Hans Irvine |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
15 December 1845 Port Phillip, Victoria |
| Died | 15 March 1910 (aged 64) Sandringham, Victoria |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Political party | Free Trade Party |
| Spouse(s) | Margaret Scott Anderson |
| Occupation | Businessman |
Thomas Skene (15 December 1845 – 15 March 1910) was an Australian politician.
Skene was born in the Port Phillip district of Victoria on 15 December 1845 to Scottish-born pastoralist William Skene and Jane, née Robertson. William was a member of the Victorian Legislative Council 1870-76. Thomas attended Cavendish and Scotch College in Melbourne, and subsequently entered the University of Aberdeen, after which he embarked on a long tour of Europe and the United States.
Skene married Margaret Scott Anderson on 2 September 1871, and ran Bassett, his father's property near Branxholme, from 1868, where he bred merino sheep. He sold the property in 1882 to finance a venture in New Mexico; he was unable to come to terms with the Mexican Government, however, necessitating his return to Victoria.
Maintaining a Melbourne home from 1892, Skene served on both the Portland and Stawell shire councils, was a founder of the Chamber of Agriculture, and was president of the Royal Agricultural Society of Victoria 1897-99 and 1906–08, having been a councillor since 1892. He also held the positions of chairman and president of the Colonial Bank of Australasia and director of the Trustees Executors & Agency Co. Ltd.
Skene unsuccessfully ran for the Victorian Legislative Assembly in 1892 for the seat of Dundas. After strongly supporting Federation, he was elected to the first Parliament as a Free Trade Party member of the Australian House of Representatives, representing the seat of Grampians. He was a moderate free trader, however, and functioned as a link between that party and the Protectionists. He attempted to transfer to the Senate in 1906 but was defeated.
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