William Hutchinson (Victorian politician)

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William Hutchinson (31 May 1864 – 18 December 1924) was an Australian politician in Victoria. He was born in Stawell to miner William Hutchinson and Mary McKay. He went to state school and night classes while helping on his uncle’s farm. He worked as a shop assistant in Murtoa until 1885, then became a watchmaker and jeweller in Warracknabeal. He married Janet Mackay on 7 September 1898, and they had four children.

In October 1902 Hutchinson was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly as the member for Borung. He was a Country Liberal who opposed Thomas Bent. He served as Minister of Water Supply and Agriculture from 22 December 1913 to 9 November 1915, Commissioner of Crown Lands and Survey from 9 November 1915 to 29 November 1917, and Minister of Public Instruction and Forests from 1918 to 1920. He was defeated in 1920 by David Allison of the Victorian Farmers’ Union.

Hutchinson had sold his Warracknabeal business in 1907 and lived in Melbourne. He died in East Malvern in 1924. His nephew John Austin Gray later served in the Victorian Parliament.