George Neilly was an Australian politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Parliament from 1954 to 1977. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party

Australian Labor Party

The Australian Labor Party is an Australian political party. It has been the governing party of the Commonwealth of Australia since the 2007 federal election. Julia Gillard is the party's federal parliamentary leader and Prime Minister of Australia...

 (ALP).

Neilly was born in the Hunter Valley

Hunter Valley

The Hunter Region, more commonly known as the Hunter Valley, is a region of New South Wales, Australia, extending from approximately to north of Sydney with an approximate population of 645,395 people. Most of the population of the Hunter Region lives within of the coast, with 55% of the entire...

 coal mining town of Kurri Kurri

Kurri Kurri, New South Wales

Kurri Kurri is a small town in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia, in the Cessnock LGA. At the 2006 census its population was 5,644...

. He was the son of a carter and was educated to 8th grade level at Maitland

Maitland, New South Wales

Maitland is a city in the Lower Hunter Valley of New South Wales, Australia and the seat of Maitland City Council, situated on the Hunter River approximately by road north of Sydney and north-west of Newcastle...

 High School. At age 17 he became a coal miner at Abermain

Abermain, New South Wales

Abermain is a town located 8 km ENE of Cessnock and 3 km west of Weston, in New South Wales, Australia. Abermain is adjacent to Werakata National Park.-Schools and Education:...

 Colliery. He was an office-holder in the Miners' Federation and was general secretary of the Northern Lodge of the union from 1954 to 1959.

He saw service during World War Two on HMAS Australia.

In 1954 he was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Council

New South Wales Legislative Council

The New South Wales Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of New South Wales in Australia. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in the state capital, Sydney. The Assembly is referred to as the lower house and the Council as...

 through an indirect election by the New South Wales Parliament. He was elected for the balance of the term of Francis Buckley who resigned from parliament.

He won ALP pre-selection for the seat of Cessnock

Electoral district of Cessnock

Cessnock is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales in the rural fringe of the Hunter. It is represented by Clayton Barr of the Australian Labor Party.-History:...

 at the 1959 state election. He won the seat replacing the previous member John Crook

John Crook (Australian politician)

John Crook was an Australian politician. He was a member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1949 to 1959. He was a member of the Australian Labor Party ....

.

He retired due to ill health prior to the state election of 1978. He was the father of Stan Neilly

Stan Neilly

Stanley Thomas "Stan" Neilly is a former Australian politician. He was the Labor Party member for Cessnock in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly from 1981 to 1988 and from 1991 to 1999....

who was also a member for the seat of Cessnock.