Alexander McArthur (10 March 1814 – 1 August 1909) was an Irish-born Australian and British businessman. He was a politician in both countries.

Early life and career

Alexander McArthur was born on 10 March 1814 in

Enniskillen Enniskillen ( , from ga, Inis Ceithleann , 'Cethlenn, Ceithlenn's island') is the largest town in County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland. It is in the middle of the county, between the Upper and Lower sections of Lough Erne. It had a population of ...

, Ireland, to

Wesleyan Wesleyan theology, otherwise known as Wesleyan– Arminian theology, or Methodist theology, is a theological tradition in Protestant Christianity based upon the ministry of the 18th-century evangelical reformer brothers John Wesley and Charles W ...

minister John McArthur and Sarah McArthur . He was privately educated and, in 1830, was apprenticed to a merchant in

Omagh Omagh (; from ga, An Ómaigh , meaning 'the virgin plain') is the county town of County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. It is situated where the rivers River Drumragh, Drumragh and Camowen River, Camowen meet to form the River Strule, Strule. North ...

. After being struck by severe fevers, McArthur arrived at

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

on 24 January 1842. He began business with a

consignment Consignment involves selling one's personal goods (clothing, furniture, etc.) through a third-party vendor such as a consignment store or online thrift store. The owner of the goods pays the third-party a portion of the sale for facilitating t ...

from his brother

William William is a male given name of Germanic origin.Hanks, Hardcastle and Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of First Names'', Oxford University Press, 2nd edition, , p. 276. It became very popular in the English language after the Norman conquest of Engl ...

before becoming partners with William Little and James H. Atkinson and returning to Ireland in 1848, where he founded the softgood merchants W. and A. McArthur & Co. in 1850. Returning to Sydney the following year, McArthur worked as a

shipping agent A shipping agency or shipping agent is the designated person or agency held responsible for handling shipments and cargo, and the general interests of its customers, at ports and harbors worldwide, on behalf of ship owners, managers, and charte ...

and profited greatly from gold exports. W. and A. McArthur built a large warehouse in the city and opened branches in

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 ...

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the states and territories of Australia, Australian state of Queensland, and the list of cities in Australia by population, third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a populati ...

and

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The List of New Zealand urban areas by population, most populous urban area in the country and the List of cities in Oceania by po ...

. On 19 August 1853, McArthur married Maria Bowden, the daughter of William Binnington Boyce, in the Toxteth Park Chapel. Living together at Strathmore,

Glebe Point Glebe Point is a point on Sydney Harbour in the suburb of Glebe, New South Wales, Glebe, in the Inner West (Sydney), Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. External links GlebeNet: Information for Residents and Visitor ...

, they had two daughters and six sons, the eldest of which was the British politician

William Alexander McArthur William Alexander McArthur (1857 – 7 June 1923), was a British Liberal politician and businessman. Biography McArthur was born in Sydney, Australia, the eldest son of Alexander McArthur and his wife Maria Bowden, the second daughter of the R ...

. After visiting England 1854–55, McArthur served on the

Sydney Chamber of Commerce The Sydney Business Chamber was established in 1825 as the Sydney Chamber of Commerce and is the second oldest business entity in New South Wales. Today it is a division of the NSW Business Chamber. The Chamber's mission is to represent leadin ...

, as director of many building societies and insurance and mining companies, and as

justice of the peace A justice of the peace (JP) is a judicial officer of a lower or ''puisne'' court, elected or appointed by means of a commission ( letters patent) to keep the peace. In past centuries the term commissioner of the peace was often used with the sa ...

, and became a shareholder in the

Australian Joint Stock Bank The Australian Joint Stock Bank was a bank in Australia. It operated from 1852 to 1910, after which it became the Australian Bank of Commerce and then was taken over by the Bank of New South Wales in 1931. History The Australian Joint Stock Ban ...

. He was a devout Methodist and in 1843 he was elected to the committee of the Wesleyan Auxiliary Missionary Society of New South Wales. He was also treasurer of the

Young Men's Christian Association YMCA, sometimes regionally called the Y, is a worldwide youth organization based in Geneva, Switzerland, with more than 64 million beneficiaries in 120 countries. It was founded on 6 June 1844 by George Williams in London, originally ...

of Sydney and a committee member of the Benevolent Asylum, the New South Wales Auxiliary Bible Society and other charities.

Political career

In June 1859 McArthur was elected to the

New South Wales Legislative Assembly The New South Wales Legislative Assembly is the lower of the two houses of the Parliament of New South Wales, an Australian state. The upper house is the New South Wales Legislative Council. Both the Assembly and Council sit at Parliament Ho ...

for Newtown. He was a free trader and opposed state aid to religion. After being re-elected for Newtown in December 1860, he resigned in June 1861 when he was appointed to the

New South Wales Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Assembly. Both sit at Parliament House in th ...

. In 1863 McArthur went to England to take over the London business and as a result vacated his seat through absence in October 1865.

Return to Britain

McArthur was then a London merchant engaged in colonial trade and lived at Raleigh Hall,

Brixton Brixton is a district in south London, part of the London Borough of Lambeth, England. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. Brixton experienced a rapid rise in population during the 19th ce ...

. He was a J. P. for

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

and Deputy Lieutenant for the

City of London The City of London is a city, ceremonial county and local government district that contains the historic centre and constitutes, alongside Canary Wharf, the primary central business district (CBD) of London. It constituted most of London fr ...

. He became a Fellow of the

Imperial Institute The Commonwealth Education Trust is a registered charity established in 2007 as the successor trust to the Commonwealth Institute. The trust focuses on primary and secondary education and the training of teachers and invests on educational pro ...

and from 1863 a Fellow of the

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

. He became a member of the

Royal Colonial Institute The Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS) is a non-governmental organisation with a mission to promote the value of the Commonwealth and the values upon which it is based. The Society upholds the values of the Commonwealth Charter, promoting confli ...

in 1869, and also of the

Victoria Institute The Victoria Institute, or Philosophical Society of Great Britain, was founded in 1865, as a response to the publication of ''On the Origin of Species'' and ''Essays and Reviews''. Its stated objective was to defend "the great truths revealed in ...

and the

British Association The British Science Association (BSA) is a charity and learned society founded in 1831 to aid in the promotion and development of science. Until 2009 it was known as the British Association for the Advancement of Science (BA). The current Chie ...

. From 1870 to 1873 he was a member of the first

London School Board The School Board for London, commonly known as the London School Board (LSB), was an institution of local government and the first directly elected body covering the whole of London. The Elementary Education Act 1870 was the first to provide for ...

. In 1874 he was chosen as the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

candidate for

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

. As an "advanced Liberal", his programme had much in common with

Joseph Chamberlain Joseph Chamberlain (8 July 1836 – 2 July 1914) was a British statesman who was first a radical Liberal, then a Liberal Unionist after opposing home rule for Ireland, and eventually served as a leading imperialist in coalition with the Cons ...

's 'New Radicalism' and included the assimilation of the county to the borough franchise, reform of the land laws, abolition of clause 25 of the Education Act, and legislation against intemperance. He was elected

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

for Leicester in 1874. In parliament he advocated the annexation of Fiji, stricter observance of the Sabbath and Home Rule for Ireland. He retired after holding the seat for 18 years in 1892. In 1898 his firm became a limited liability company and in 1908 was reconstituted after liquidation. McArthur died at

Sydenham, London Sydenham () is a district of south-east London, England, which is shared between the London boroughs of London Borough of Lewisham, Lewisham, London Borough of Bromley, Bromley and London Borough of Southwark, Southwark. Prior to the creation of ...

on 1 August 1909. He is buried with his family in a large mausoleum in

West Norwood Cemetery West Norwood Cemetery is a rural cemetery in West Norwood in London, England. It was also known as the South Metropolitan Cemetery. One of the first private landscaped cemeteries in London, it is one of the " Magnificent Seven" cemeteries of L ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:McArthur, Alexander 1814 births 1909 deaths Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1874–1880 UK MPs 1880–1885 UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council Burials at West Norwood Cemetery Members of the London School Board