Lewis Alfred Eady (12 May 1891 – 21 April 1965) was a New Zealand music retailer, company director and benefactor.

Early life

Eady was born in Auckland, New Zealand, on 12 May 1891. After leaving school in 1906, he worked for his father, Lewis Roberts Eady, a musician who tuned pianos and traded in second-hand instruments. When the firm moved from Karangahape Road to Queen Street shortly after World War I, Eady became managing director. On 17 February 1917 at Mount Eden, Auckland, Eady married Agnes Amelia Adams, a teacher.

Councillor

Between 1925 and 1929, Eady was on the Auckland City Council. He was enthusiastic about libraries, and in 1926 he presented

Auckland Public Library Auckland Libraries is the public library system for the Auckland Region of New Zealand. It was created when the seven separate councils in the Auckland region merged in 2010. It is currently the largest public-library network in the Southern H ...

with a collection of over 600 volumes of music and music literature. He continued to donate until a substantial collection of music material was established. In the

1956 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1956 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 2 January 1956 to celebrat ...

, Eady was appointed an

Officer of the Order of the British Empire The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

, for services to the community in Auckland, especially as a city councillor.

Business owner

In 1928, the firm, now Lewis Eady Limited, moved to a seven-storey building on Queen Street that had a concert chamber, soundproofed audition rooms, and studios and professional chambers for music teachers. In 1930, the firm established its own radio station, 1ZR, in the Queen Street premises. Pioneer broadcasters included Aunt Daisy, Dudley Wrathall and Rod Talbot. A "radio church", the 'Friendly Road', was run by 'Uncle Tom' Garland and the Reverend Colin Scrimgeour.

Other activities

In 1932, Eady established the first Junior Chamber of Commerce ('Jaycees') in the southern hemisphere, and during the 1940s took leading roles in the

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

of Auckland. He was also active in the

Congregational church Congregational churches (also Congregationalist churches or Congregationalism) are Protestant churches in the Calvinist tradition practising congregationalist church governance, in which each congregation independently and autonomously runs its ...

Later life

Eady died at Remuera on 21 April 1965, survived by his wife, son and daughter.

References

1891 births 1965 deaths New Zealand philanthropists New Zealand musicians Businesspeople from Auckland New Zealand Officers of the Order of the British Empire 20th-century New Zealand businesspeople 20th-century New Zealand musicians Auckland City Councillors 20th-century philanthropists {{NewZealand-musician-stub