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John Curtin. Photo by National Library of Australia.

Top 10 Interesting Facts about John Curtin

John Curtin was a statesman, prime minister of Australia during most of World War II, and leader of the Australian Labor Party (1934–1945). He served as a prime minister from 1941 until he died in 1945. He was the longest-serving leader of the Australian Labor Party until Gough Whitlam.

Curtin was born in Creswick, Victoria, on 8 January 1885. His parents were both born in County Cork, Ireland. His father was called John Curtin Sr. He arrived in South Australia in 1873. John Curtin was the eldest son of John Curtin (born 1853) and Catherine Bourke (born 1856).

He is regarded widely as a national hero. He led Australia through the war at Pearl Harbour. He was also a reformist who set in place great policies concerning labor.

1. Curtin was born with congenital strabismus of the left eye

Curtin was born with congenital strabismus of the left eye which remained noticeable throughout his life. While it was a cosmetic defect, he was quite self-conscious about it. According to his biographer David Day, it had “a considerable psychological effect” on him, and likely exacerbated his natural shyness.

2. His first job was as an office boy

John Curtin as Leader of the Opposition. Photo by Alexander Collingridge. .

In early 1899, Curtin began working as an office boy at a weekly magazine called The Rambler. He earned five shillings per week working in the office. His employer was the artist and writer Norman Lindsay. Norman Lindsay had also grown up in Creswick and knew Curtin’s family.

The magazine, however,  did not last long. Over the following years, Curtin held down a series of short-term jobs, including as a copy boy at The Age, a potter’s apprentice, and a houseboy at a gentlemen’s club.

3. At 18, he was his family’s primary breadwinner

Curtin did not secure a permanent job until he was 18. He took up the position of an estimates clerk with the Titan Manufacturing Company in South Melbourne in September 1903.

At this time his father had become invalid after contracting chronic rheumatoid arthritis and syphilis. He was previously a police officer. Curtin took up the mantle as the primary breadwinner.

4. Curtin was a talented sportsman

Between 1903 and 1907, Curtin played as a half-forward flanker for the Brunswick Football Club in the semi-professional Victorian Football Association (VFA). He was given the nickname Bumble by his teammates.

Curtin also played cricket for the Brunswick Cricket Club. He was a very able batsman. He remained involved in both cricket and football throughout his life. He was said to have an encyclopedic knowledge of cricket statistics.

5. He was the 14th prime minister of Australia

Frank Forde and John Curtin working together at a meeting of the Advisory War Council in Canberra in 1940. Photo by State Library of Victoria.

John Curtin became Australia’s 14th prime minister when Arthur Fadden’s minority Coalition government lost the support of two key independents. In October 1941, Arthur Coles and Alexander Wilson joined forces with Labor in defeating Fadden’s budget and bringing the government down.

Governor-General Lord Gowrie summoned Coles and Wilson and made them promise that if he named Curtin prime minister, they would support him for the remainder of the Parliament to end the instability in government. The independents agreed, and Curtin was sworn in as prime minister on 7 October, aged 56.

6. He was involved in the labor movement in Melbourne at 13

Curtin left school at the age of 13 and became involved in the labor movement in Melbourne. He also joined the Labour Party and was involved with the Victorian Socialist Party.

He became state secretary of the Timberworkers’ Union in 1911 and federal president in 1914. In 1917 he moved to Perth to become the editor of the Westralian Worker. He later served as state president of the Australian Journalists Association.

7. He died from heart disease

In November 1944, he was hospitalized in Melbourne with coronary occlusion. Next in April 1945, his lungs became congested and he was admitted for a few weeks to a private hospital in Canberra.

Curtin died peacefully on 5 July 1945 in his home in Canberra. Services and lying-in-state were held in King’s Hall on 6 July. His body was then flown to Perth where he was buried at Karrakatta Cemetery on 8 July 1945.

8. Curtin was married to Elsie Needham

Photographic portrait of Elsie and John Curtin, 1938. Photo by National Library of Australia. .

In 1917, John Curtin married Elsie Needham. She was the sister of Senator Ted Needham of the Labor Party. The marriage was good for Curtin for it made him comparatively more serene and stable. The couple had two children; a daughter, Elsie, and a son, John.

9. He introduced many sensible policies during his tenure

During his tenure, aboriginal Australians were provided with increased welfare benefits, deserted women and widows were provided with pensions, pension for the elderly and sick was increased, child allowance was introduced, and Universities Commission was established.

10. He battled alcoholism throughout his life

John Curtin School of Medical Research, Canberra. Photo by Cazzj. .

Curtin had become an alcoholic following his 1914 failure and moved to Fremantle, Western Australia, in 1917. With the support of Anstey, he was appointed editor of the Westralian Worker, serving until 1928 despite instances of erratic, alcohol-affected behavior. His marriage to Elsie Needham helped him settle a little. It significantly reduced his alcoholic tendencies.