Alfred Sandover

M.B.E. Mbe may refer to: * Mbé, a town in the Republic of the Congo * Mbe Mountains Community Forest, in Nigeria * Mbe language, a language of Nigeria * Mbe' language, language of Cameroon * ''mbe'', ISO 639 code for the extinct Molala language Molal ...

(24 November 1866 – 4 May 1958), was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

n hardware merchant and philanthropist born in

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, the youngest of five children. Graduating from North Adelaide Grammar School in 1881, he came to

Perth, Western Australia Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

, in 1884, arriving in

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

when the temperature was 41 °C (106 °F) and vowing to stay not a day over his contract. In 1921, Sandover donated the

medal A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be int ...

bearing his name as the West Australian Football League's annual award recognising the league's fairest and best player of the regular season.

Personal life

Sandover was the youngest of five children of

William Sandover William Sandover (21 September 1822 – 5 March 1909) was a British hotelier and politician in South Australia, the father of Alfred Sandover MBE and great grandfather of Raymond Sandover DSO, ED. History He was born in Cornwood, Devon, Engla ...

and his wife Mary Billing, née Bates. William was a

hotelier A hotel manager, hotelier, or lodging manager is a person who manages the operation of a hotel, motel, resort, or other lodging-related establishment. Management of a hotel operation includes, but is not limited to management of hotel staff, bu ...

and later a politician in

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 ...

. While on a visit to England, Alfred was born on 24 November 1866. The family returned to

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 ...

, on the ''City of Adelaide'', arriving on 12 October 1867. Educated at

North Adelaide Grammar School North Adelaide Grammar School, later Whinham College was a private school operated in North Adelaide, South Australia by John Whinham (3 August 1803 – 13 March 1886) and his family. History John Whinham The founder of the school was born at S ...

, in 1881 Sandover attained first-class honours in the senior public examination. His older brother, William Sandover, Jnr., (c. 1856 – c. 22 May 1921) had moved to Western Australia around 1880 and opened a chemist's shop and hardware store, and called on Alfred to help him run the business, W. Sandover & Co. Alfred arrived in Fremantle in 1884, and initially found the dust, the glare, and temperature of 41 °C (106 °F), unbearable; he determined to return as soon as his contract term elapsed, yet Sandover eventually decided to remain in Western Australia for the rest of his life. The company prospered: gold was discovered at Coolgardie and Kalgoorlie, and the 1890s saw a huge demand for machinery and all kinds of hardware which W. Sandover & Co. was able to supply. On 11 July 1895, Alfred Sandover married Rose Allen at St. Georges Church in

Malvern, Victoria Malvern () is a suburb of Melbourne, Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia, 8 km south-east of Melbourne's Melbourne city centre, Central Business District, located within the City of Stonnington Local government areas of Victoria, loca ...

, and in 1896 they bought an property in Claremont, which they named "Knutsford". In 1921, Sandover provided for the Western Australian Football league the medal for the fairest and best footballer during the regular season. The medal is awarded annually in the week before the grand final with a descendant of Sandover present for the presentation. Sandover was awarded a Member of the Order of the British Empire (M.B.E.) in 1951. He retired in 1957 at the age of 90 and died at home on 4 May 1958.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sandover, Alfred People from Perth, Western Australia 1866 births 1958 deaths Hardware merchants Members of the Order of the British Empire