Peter Waite (9 May 1834 – 4 April 1922) was a

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 ...

n pastoralist, businessman, company director and public benefactor. Waite's philanthropic endeavors provided significant benefit to the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

and to local public schools, and generations of students have benefited from his largesse.

Career

Waite was born at

Kirkcaldy Kirkcaldy ( ; sco, Kirkcaldy; gd, Cair Chaladain) is a town and former royal burgh in Fife, on the east coast of Scotland. It is about north of Edinburgh and south-southwest of Dundee. The town had a recorded population of 49,460 in 2011, ...

Fife Fife (, ; gd, Fìobha, ; sco, Fife) is a council area, historic county, registration county and lieutenancy area of Scotland. It is situated between the Firth of Tay and the Firth of Forth, with inland boundaries with Perth and Kinross (i ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

, son of James Waite, a farmer, and his wife Elizabeth, ''née'' Stocks. Waite was left fatherless and after leaving school he was apprenticed to an ironmonger and spent nine years in commercial pursuits. Waite then sailed to

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 ...

aboard the ''British Trident'', landed at

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 ...

and went on to South Australia. There he joined his brother James who was part owner of Pandappa station near Terowie. Waite worked on this station for some years and acquired a thorough knowledge of the pastoral industry. Waite then (in conjunction with Sir Thomas Elder) bought Paratoo station, and gradually obtained interests in other properties. He was one of the first to realize the value of fenced as against open runs, and spent over £200,000 in fencing and providing water. He later owned

Momba Station Momba Station is a pastoral lease that operates as a sheep station in New South Wales. The property is situated approximately south east of White Cliffs and north east of Wilcannia. History Momba Station on the Paroo River and the Darling ...

, one of the largest sheep stations in outback

New South Wales ) , nickname = , image_map = New South Wales in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of New South Wales in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , es ...

. Waite and other pastoralists in the area formed the Pastoralists' Association of West Darling in 1906. On 21 November 1864 Waite married his first cousin Matilda Methuen (d.1922), a daughter of James Methuen of Leith, Scotland. Together they had eight children. For many years he lived in the country and kept a strict eye on the management of his various properties. Later he was able to hand over much of this management to his son, while he conducted business in Adelaide. He thoroughly understood the needs of pastoralists, and in 1883 became chairman of Elder's Wool & Produce Co. Ltd, a subsidiary Elder Smith and Company. In 1888 the two companies were amalgamated and he became chairman of directors of Elder Smith & Co. Ltd, "displaying remarkable ingenuity and initiative". He held this position for 34 years, resigning a few months before his death. Waite was also Managing Director of the Beltana Pastoral Co. Ltd and the Mutooroo Pastoral Co. Ltd. He held directorships with the Commercial Union Assurance Co. Ltd, the British Broken Hill Co. Ltd, and the S.A. Woollen Co. Ltd.

Philanthropic deeds

In 1913 Waite presented to the

his valuable Urrbrae estate comprising and house, to which in 1915 was added the adjoining Claremont and Netherby estates of . Benefactions to the

allowed the university to establish the Waite Agricultural Research Institute which later became the Waite Campus of the university, the hub of the

Waite Research Precinct Urrbrae is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the City of Mitcham. Located at the foot of the Adelaide Hills, it is bordered on the east by the South Eastern Freeway, and the Old Toll House, which marked the traditional en ...

. The Waite Institute was established on the site in 1924. The donation remains one of the largest public benefactions in South Australian history. The objective of the bequest was to advance the cause of education, and more especially, to promote the teaching and study of agriculture, forestry and other related subjects. The Waite Institute has developed into an integrated research and teaching precinct that has been presented as a model for the collocation of agricultural research institutions. Waite also gave an adjoining estate of to the government of South Australia for the purpose of founding an agricultural high school:

Urrbrae Agricultural High School Urrbrae Agricultural High School is a public high school in the Australian state of South Australia, with approximately 1,016 students. The school is located in the Adelaide suburb of Netherby, about south-east of the Adelaide city centre. ...

. Waite was working until a few months before his death from heart failure on 4 April 1922; he was survived by his wife, son and three daughters. One of his daughters, Elizabeth Macmeikan (died 5 April 1931), left the residue of her estate, some £16,000, to the University of Adelaide to be used for the study of sciences relating to the land, either in connexion with the Waite Research Institute or otherwise.

References

External links

Urrbrae House
- University of Adelaide
Waite Campus
of the University of Adelaide
Death of Mr. Peter Waite; A Prince of Benefactors.
The Advertiser (Newspaper Adelaide, SA : 1889 - 1931), Wed 5 Apr 1922, Page 7
Death of Mr. Peter Waite; Big City Business Ventures.
The Advertiser (Newspaper Adelaide, SA : 1889 – 1931), Wed 5 Apr 1922, Page 9
Obituary: Death of Mr. Peter Waite; A Prince of Benefactors.
- Chronicle (Newspaper Adelaide, SA : 1895 - 1954), Sat 8 Apr 1922 {{DEFAULTSORT:Waite, Peter 1834 births 1922 deaths Australian businesspeople Australian philanthropists Settlers of South Australia People from Kirkcaldy Scottish emigrants to Australia