Percy Grose Hordern (1 January 1864 – 1 April 1926) was an Australian businessman, politician and a member of 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 ...

for the Labor Party. Hordern was a member of the influential

Hordern family The Hordern family is an Australian retailing dynasty. Outline The Hordern family first came to prominence in Sydney as merchants and retailers with the establishment of Anthony Hordern & Sons, and then gained notability in rural pursuits, stoc ...

and for many years ran a

drapery Drapery is a general word referring to cloths or textiles (Old French , from Late Latin ). It may refer to cloth used for decorative purposes – such as around windows – or to the trade of retailing cloth, originally mostly for clothin ...

business.

Family and education

Hordern was born in

Darlinghurst, New South Wales Darlinghurst is an inner-city, eastern suburb of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Darlinghurst is located immediately east of the Sydney central business district (CBD) and Hyde Park, within the local government area of the City of Sydney. I ...

, the second son of Edward Hordern (1838–1883) and his wife Emily (ca.1842–1865), née Grose. After the death of his mother, his father married again, on 17 November 1866, to Christiana Matilda Stack. His first home was at 676 George Street, then "Milton House", Darlinghurst Road, then "Chatsworth",

Potts Point Potts Point is a small and densely populated suburb in inner-city Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. Potts Point is located east of the Sydney central business district and is part of the local government area of the City of Sydney. Potts ...

. Percy attended

Newington College , motto_translation = To Faith Add Knowledge , location = Inner West and Lower North Shore of Sydney, New South Wales , country = Australia , coordinates = , pushpin_map = A ...

from 1874 until 1878, whilst the school was situated at

Newington House Newington House is a historic house in Silverwater, New South Wales, Australia and is located west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the City of Parramatta. The house and chapel are situated on the souther ...

on the

Parramatta River The Parramatta River is an intermediate tide-dominated, drowned valley estuary located in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. With an average depth of , the Parramatta River is the main tributary of Sydney Harbour, a branch of Port Jackson. Seco ...

Marriage

Hordern married Annie Wright (1865–1939) on 17 February 1885. Zanobi, in Petersham, was given to the young couple as a wedding present from his family.

Business career

Hordern assisted in the management of the family business, which prospered and moved to 668–670 George Street and in 1881 his father retired, leaving the business in the hands of his sons Edward jun. and Percy and Mr. Hugh Kittson, trading as Edward Hordern and Sons. In August 1889 he began as a sole trader in a new building at 666 (George Street) Brickfield Hill, promoted as the "modern shop". and employing numerous small punchy advertisements rather than the conventional single, large, detailed panel of information then prevalent. The business prospered and expanded but in 1901 Percy announced his intention to retire, and on 15 February 1902 the shop ceased trading, the premises being taken over by his brother Edward Hordern. As an investor he owned city property and he served as a trustee of Barrack Street Savings Bank. From 1920 he was a member of the Metropolitan Meat Industry Board.

Public office

Hordern was an

Alderman An alderman is a member of a Municipal government, municipal assembly or council in many Jurisdiction, jurisdictions founded upon English law. The term may be titular, denoting a high-ranking member of a borough or county council, a council membe ...

on Petersham Council from 1895 until 1917. He served as Mayor from 1897 until 1898, 1903 until 1905, 1908 until 1910. He was a life appointment to the NSW Legislative Council and served for four years, seven months and three days. He was commissioned as a Justice of the Peace in 1899.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hordern, Percy Grose 1864 births 1926 deaths Mayors of Petersham Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council Australian businesspeople in retailing People educated at Newington College Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of New South Wales Horden family