Alexander Lang Elder (18 April 1815 – 5 September 1885) was a
Scottish Australian
Scottish Australians ( sco, Scots Australiens, gd, Astràilianaich Albannach) are residents of Australia who are fully or partially of Scottish descent.
According to the 2021 Australian census, 130,060 Australian residents were ...
businessman and politician in colonial
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
.
Biography
Elder was the second son of George Elder of
Kirkcaldy,
Fife, Scotland, by Joanna Haddo, his wife, daughter of Alexander Lang, of
Leith
Leith (; gd, Lìte) is a port area in the north of the city of Edinburgh, Scotland, founded at the mouth of the Water of Leith. In 2021, it was ranked by ''Time Out'' as one of the top five neighbourhoods to live in the world.
The earliest ...
, born at Kirkcaldy. He was the brother of pastoralist and businessman
Thomas Elder
Sir Thomas Elder, (5 August 1818 – 6 March 1897), was a Scottish-Australian pastoralist, highly successful businessman, philanthropist, politician, race-horse owner and breeder, and public figure. Amongst many other things, he is notable fo ...
. He emigrated on his father's
schooner ''Minerva''
[ to South Australia, arriving on 2 January 1840 in Port Adelaide as the only cabin passenger, under Captain David Reid.]
He founded the well-known mercantile firm of Elders Limited
Elders Limited, formerly known as Elder, Stirling & Co., Elder Smith and Co. and Elder Smith & Co. Ltd, is an Australian agribusiness that provides agricultural goods and services to primary producers in Australia.
History
Early history (183 ...
, later Elder, Smith & Co., of Adelaide
Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...
. He was a partner with Frederick Dutton in a pastoral lease at Mount Remarkable
Mount Remarkable is a mountain in South Australia located in the Flinders Ranges about north of the centre of the capital city of Adelaide and immediately north-west of the town of Melrose, which was once named Mount Remarkable itself, and wh ...
in 1846.
He married Mary Eliza Austin, a daughter of Rev. John Baptist Austin of South Australia, on 8 April 1847.[
He was elected by the West Adelaide district to the first mixed franchise Legislative Council in 1851, but resigned his seat on 30 March 1853,] leaving for England, where he headed of the firm of A. L. Elder & Co., of London, until his death in London on 5 September 1885.[
]
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elder, Alexander Lang
1815 births
1885 deaths
Settlers of South Australia
Members of the South Australian Legislative Council
19th-century Australian politicians
19th-century Australian businesspeople