Whitmore Blake Carr (12 October 1861 – 26 August 1943), was a journalist, sportsman in South Australia and longtime chairman of the Adelaide Stock Exchange. He has been referred to as "Doc" Carr.

History

Carr was born in

Dungog, New South Wales Dungog is a country town on the Williams River in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. Located in the middle of dairy and timber country, it is the centre of the Dungog Shire local government area and at the 2016 census it had a po ...

the son of Anglican Rev. Whitmore Carr (c. 1820 – 18 May 1903), who left New South Wales for South Australia around 1864 to take charge of St. Bartholmew's Church in Norwood. He was educated at J. L. Young's

Adelaide Educational Institution Adelaide Educational Institution was a privately run non-sectarian academy for boys in Adelaide founded in 1852 by John Lorenzo Young.B. K. Hyams'Young, John Lorenzo (1826–1881)' ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Volume 6, Melbourne Unive ...

, then at age 14 joined the staff of the ''

South Australian Register ''The Register'', originally the ''South Australian Gazette and Colonial Register'', and later ''South Australian Register,'' was South Australia's first newspaper. It was first published in London in June 1836, moved to Adelaide in 1837, and f ...

''. For some years he was the ''Registers political reporter, and was noted for his integrity and discretion. He was also "caller" at Adelaide racetracks for many years. He resigned from ''The Register'' in 1890 to take the position of Chairman of the Adelaide Stock Exchange, a position he held until 1930. He was elected vice-president in 1902, and served as president in 1904, serving in that position for 25 years, a British Empire record. On the resignation of

W. Moxon Cook William Moxon Cook (18 June 1857 – 20 December 1917) invariably known as Moxon or W. Moxon Cook, was an Australian sports journalist who wrote as "Trumpator" for the ''Register'' and "Terlinga" for ''The Australasian''. History Cook was born a ...

, ("Trumpator" in ''The Register'') in 1892, to become "Terlinga" in ''The Australasian'', Carr was invited back as part-time racing journalist and wrote as "Tarquin" from then to 1904. He retired from ''The Register'' in May 1904, just prior to his marriage to Clara Jane Bonnin, and was succeeded by Hadrian Moody (pen-name "Mostyn"), for some years Carr's assistant. He was elected to the

Adelaide Racing Club Adelaide Racing Club was a horse racing club which had its origins around 1870 but founded in 1879 in competition with the South Australian Jockey Club. The A.R.C. held their race meetings on the "Old Adelaide Racecourse" (later known as Victoria P ...

committee, and succeeded James R. Anderson as chairman, serving from 1909 to 1919, when he resigned to join the committee of the

South Australian Jockey Club South Australian Jockey Club is the principal race club in South Australia. First racing events The first horse racing events in South Australia took place at a well-attended picnic meeting held over 1 and 2 January 1838. In August 1838, ridin ...

. He was elected S.A.J.C. chairman in 1924, a position he held until 1940, when he declined to stand, but was reappointed to the committee every year thereafter, the last being just a few weeks before his death.

Other interests

He was a director of Advertiser Newspapers Ltd. for over 12 years He was a director of the Adelaide board of Guardian Assurance Company. He was a committee member of Woodlands School. He was a President of the Amateur Athletic Association. He was a Chairman of the

South Australian National Football League The South Australian National Football League, or SANFL ( or ''S-A-N-F-L''), is an Australian rules football league based in the Australian state of South Australia. It is also the state's governing body for the sport. Originally formed as the ...

. He was a member of the

Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals The Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) is a charity operating in England and Wales that promotes animal welfare. The RSPCA is funded primarily by voluntary donations. Founded in 1824, it is the oldest and largest an ...

, the Mount Lofty Convalescent Home and the Glenelg Institute. He was a committee member of the Chamber of Commerce for over 30 years, and a delegate to the sixth congress of the Chambers of Commerce of the British Empire in London in 1906.

Recognition

*He was appointed honorary steward to the A.R.C., Tattersalls, Onkaparinga and Adelaide Hunt Clubs. *He was elected life member of the Adelaide Stock Exchange, the only person to be so honoured. *He was made life member of the S.A.J.C. in January 1939. *He was made life member of the Adelaide Racing Club.

Family

He married four times: *Jessie Annie Cooke on 9 December 1886 *Clara Jane Bonnin, née Simms, widow of solicitor Fred Bonnin (died 14 September 1901) on 2 June 1904. Clara was the youngest daughter of

William Knox Simms William Knox Simms (1830 – 25 December 1897) was a brewer, businessman and politician in the early days of South Australia. History Simms migrated to South Australia from England, arriving in December 1845. He formed a partnership with John ...

. Clara Jane Carr died 6 January 1908. *Eleanor Josephine Kither, née Turnbull (15 April 1879 – 8 April 1928) on 3 October 1914 *Millicent Myrtle Leitch on 15 February 1936 He was survived by his widow, a stepson and two stepdaughters, His home was at Partridge Street, Glenelg.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Carr, Whitmore Australian journalists People educated at Adelaide Educational Institution Australian horse racing officials 1860 births 1943 deaths