Anthony family

The Anthony family is an Australian political family whose public significance comes from three successive generations serving in federal politics, principally as representatives of the Division of Richmond in northern New South Wales. The family’s political lineage began with Hubert Lawrence “Larry” Anthony, commonly identified as Larry Anthony senior, who entered the Australian House of Representatives for Richmond in 1937 as a member of the Country Party. He held the seat until his death in 1957 and also served as a minister in the Menzies government, including during the wartime and post-war periods. Larry Anthony senior was succeeded in Richmond by his son, Doug Anthony, creating a direct generational succession in the same federal electorate. Doug Anthony represented Richmond from 1957 until 1984 and became one of the most prominent Country Party leaders of the post-war era. He served as Deputy Prime Minister of Australia during two periods, first from 1971 to 1972 and again from 1975 to 1983, while also holding senior ministerial responsibilities in coalition governments. His career linked the family name with rural representation, agricultural interests, regional development and the Country Party’s role in Australian conservative coalition politics. The Country Party was later renamed the National Party, and Doug Anthony became a central figure in that political tradition. The third generation was Larry Anthony junior, Doug Anthony’s son. He represented Richmond for the Nationals from 1996 to 2004 and served as a minister in the Howard government from 1998 to 2004. His election extended the family’s association with Richmond across three consecutive generations, an unusually durable form of electoral succession in Australian federal politics. The succession was not uninterrupted in a literal parliamentary-tenure sense because Doug Anthony’s retirement in 1984 preceded Larry Anthony junior’s election in 1996, but the family remained closely identified with the electorate and with the National Party. The Anthony family is therefore classified in Australian political-family reference material as one of the families with three or more members elected to the same federal district. Its importance is institutional rather than commercial: it is not a consumer brand, company or product business. The family’s legacy illustrates how electoral representation, party organization, regional identity and inherited political networks can intersect in Australia. The available reference material documents the parliamentary careers of the three principal members but does not establish a formal family organization, current political leadership, commercial ownership, website or continuing institutional entity.

The Anthony family’s documented political history spans three generations of federal representation in Australia. Hubert Lawrence “Larry” Anthony entered the House of Representatives in 1937 as the Country Party member for Richmond, an electorate in northern New South Wales. He retained the seat until 1957 and served as a minister in the Menzies government. His career established the family’s long association with the electorate and with the Country Party’s role as the parliamentary voice of rural and regional interests. When Larry Anthony senior died in 1957, his son Doug Anthony succeeded him as the member for Richmond. Doug Anthony remained in the House until 1984. During this period he became a senior Country Party figure and served as Deputy Prime Minister from 1971 to 1972 and from 1975 to 1983. His parliamentary career covered a period in which the Country Party participated in long-running coalition governments and later adopted the National Party name. Through ministerial office and party leadership, Doug Anthony gave the family a national profile beyond its regional electoral base. Doug Anthony’s son, Larry Anthony, subsequently continued the family’s parliamentary connection. He represented Richmond for the Nationals from 1996 to 2004 and served as a minister in the Howard government from 1998 to 2004. His election meant that three generations of the same family had represented the same federal district, a pattern specifically recognized in reference material on Australian political families. The family’s historical importance rests on continuity of representation rather than on a formal business structure. The available sources do not identify a founding date, corporate headquarters, owner, commercial parent, website or current operating entity. Nor do they document campaigns, scandals, corporate decisions or financial performance under the family name. The Anthony family is best understood as a historical political dynasty within Australian electoral history, especially the history of the Richmond electorate and the Country Party/National Party tradition.

• 2004

  Larry Anthony’s parliamentary tenure ends

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Larry Anthony’s documented service as the Nationals member for Richmond and as a Howard-government minister concludes.

• 1998

  Larry Anthony joins the Howard ministry

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Larry Anthony begins ministerial service in the Howard government.

• 1996

  Third generation enters parliament

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Larry Anthony is elected for Richmond as a Nationals member, extending the family’s association with the district to a third generation.

• 1984

  Doug Anthony leaves the House of Representatives

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Doug Anthony’s parliamentary representation of Richmond ends after nearly three decades.

• 1975

  Second period as Deputy Prime Minister

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Doug Anthony returns as Deputy Prime Minister after the change of government in 1975 and remains in the role until 1983.

• 1971

  Doug Anthony becomes Deputy Prime Minister

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Doug Anthony serves as Deputy Prime Minister of Australia for the first of two periods, from 1971 to 1972.

• 1957

  Doug Anthony succeeds his father in Richmond

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Following Larry Anthony senior’s death, Doug Anthony becomes the Country Party member for Richmond and begins the second generation of the family’s parliamentary representation.

• 1941

  Ministerial service during the Menzies era

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Larry Anthony senior serves as a minister in the Menzies government, including a period during the Second World War.

• 1937

  Larry Anthony senior enters federal parliament

  [1]Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org

  Hubert Lawrence “Larry” Anthony is elected to the Australian House of Representatives for the Division of Richmond as a Country Party member.

A historical Australian political dynasty associated with the National Party tradition and the federal Division of Richmond.

1. 1Political families of Australiaen.wikipedia.org