Families", and fined £500. In May 1888, Stephen Henry Parker petitioned for bankruptcy, and was therefore obliged to resign his seat in the Legislative Council. Horgan contested the subsequent by-election, on a similar platform as previously. He remained a staunch opponent of the Government, and was especially critical of Governor Broome, who was seen by many of the working class as overbearing and quarrelsome. To the great surprise of the colony's ruling elite, Horgan defeated his conservative opponent Septimus Burt by three votes. Stannage (1979) writes that "Horgan's victory was regarded at the time as a turning point in the history of working men's political activity.... The election had a liberating effect on the minds of the workers, analogous to the victory of Robert Lowe in Sydney forty years previously". Despite the significance of his election, Horgan achieved little in the Legislative Council, and held his seat only until the next general election on 22 January 1889, in which he was defeated by Edward Keane. From 1890, he practised in partnership with Frederick Moorhead, and later with M.G. Lavan. Personal life He married Mary Ann Oliff (née Horan) in 1861; they would have twelve children. She died in August 1889. In February 1891, he married Mary Ann (Marion) Coffey. He died in Perth on 8 July 1907, and was buried at East Perth Cemetery. Notes References External links 1834 births 1907 deaths Members of the Western Australian Legislative Council Politicians from County Cork Irish barristers Burials at East Perth Cemeteries Irish emigrants to colonial Australia 19th-century Australian politicians Settlers of Western Australia