Born in Melbourne, he received no formal education and was raised in an orphanage.

He became a farm labourer and was secretary of the Victorian branch of the Carters and Drivers Union.

[1] In 1929, he was elected to the Australian House of Representatives as the Labor member for Corio.

After leaving federal politics, Lewis worked as a clerk with the Queensland Prohibition League.

This article about an Australian Labor Party member of the House of Representatives is a stub.