Sir William McMillan KCMGThe Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent whilst he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III. It is named in honour of two military saints, St. Michael and St...
(14 November 1850 – 21 December 1926) was an
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
n politician and businessman.
Alfred DeakinAlfred Deakin , Australian politician, was a leader of the movement for Australian federation and later second Prime Minister of Australia. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, Deakin was a major contributor to the establishment of liberal reforms in the colony of Victoria, including...
said he was a "thoughtful, educated businessman, narrow and cold after the manner of the Manchester School … business-like in manner and incisive in debate".
McMillan was born in
DerryDerry or Londonderry often called the Maiden City, is a city in Northern Ireland. It is the second largest city in Northern Ireland and fourth largest city in the island of Ireland...
,
IrelandIreland is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islets. To the east of Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain...
and educated at
Wesley CollegeThis article is about Wesley College in Dublin, Ireland. See Wesley College for articles on other institutions named "Wesley College"....
,
DublinDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
(together with
H. B. HigginsHenry Bournes Higgins , Australian politician and judge, always known in his lifetime as H. B. Higgins, was a highly influential figure in Australian politics and law....
) and at
Tulse HillTulse Hill is a district and tumulus in the London Borough of Lambeth in South London, England. It lies to the south of Brixton, east of Brixton Hill, north of West Norwood and west of West Dulwich.-History:...
School in
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
. He travelled to
SydneySydney is the largest city in Australia, and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney has a metropolitan area population of approximately 4.34 million and an area of approximately 12,000 square kilometres. Its inhabitants are called Sydneysiders, and Sydney is often called "the Harbour City"...
in 1869 to develop a branch of
McArthur, softgoods merchants.
Sir William McMillan KCMGThe Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent whilst he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III. It is named in honour of two military saints, St. Michael and St...
(14 November 1850 – 21 December 1926) was an
AustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the continental mainland , the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans...
n politician and businessman.
Alfred DeakinAlfred Deakin , Australian politician, was a leader of the movement for Australian federation and later second Prime Minister of Australia. In the last quarter of the nineteenth century, Deakin was a major contributor to the establishment of liberal reforms in the colony of Victoria, including...
said he was a "thoughtful, educated businessman, narrow and cold after the manner of the Manchester School … business-like in manner and incisive in debate".
McMillan was born in
DerryDerry or Londonderry often called the Maiden City, is a city in Northern Ireland. It is the second largest city in Northern Ireland and fourth largest city in the island of Ireland...
,
IrelandIreland is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island in the world. It lies to the north-west of continental Europe and is surrounded by hundreds of islands and islets. To the east of Ireland, separated by the Irish Sea, is the island of Great Britain...
and educated at
Wesley CollegeThis article is about Wesley College in Dublin, Ireland. See Wesley College for articles on other institutions named "Wesley College"....
,
DublinDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
(together with
H. B. HigginsHenry Bournes Higgins , Australian politician and judge, always known in his lifetime as H. B. Higgins, was a highly influential figure in Australian politics and law....
) and at
Tulse HillTulse Hill is a district and tumulus in the London Borough of Lambeth in South London, England. It lies to the south of Brixton, east of Brixton Hill, north of West Norwood and west of West Dulwich.-History:...
School in
London[]London is the capital of England and the United Kingdom. It has been a major settlement for two millennia, and the history of London goes back to its founding by the Romans, when it was named Londinium. London's core, the ancient City of London, the 'square mile', retains its medieval boundaries...
. He travelled to
SydneySydney is the largest city in Australia, and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney has a metropolitan area population of approximately 4.34 million and an area of approximately 12,000 square kilometres. Its inhabitants are called Sydneysiders, and Sydney is often called "the Harbour City"...
in 1869 to develop a branch of
McArthur, softgoods merchants. He later worked at the company's
MelbourneMelbourne is the capital city and most populous city of the State of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne city centre is the anchor of the larger geographical area and statistical division known as the Greater Melbourne metropolitan area – of which Melbourne is...
branch before returning to Sydney as resident partner in 1876. He later became chairman and managing director of
Metropolitan Coal Company Limited and a director the Australian branches of
Westinghouse Air Brake CompanyThe air brake was invented by George Westinghouse of New York State in 1869. He moved to Pittsburgh, Pa., where he established the Westinghouse Air Brake Company...
Limited and
Phoenix Assurance Company Limited. He was the president of Sydney Chamber of Commerce in 1886. In 1878 he married Ada Charlotte Graham, aged 16, and they had two daughters and two sons.
In 1887, McMillan was elected as the member for
East SydneyEast Sydney was a former electoral district for the Legislative Assembly in the Australian State of New South Wales created in 1859 from part of the electoral district of Sydney, covering the eastern part of the current Sydney central business district, Woolloomooloo, Potts Point, Elizabeth Bay...
in the
New South Wales Legislative AssemblyThe Legislative Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in the state capital, Sydney at Parliament House. It is presided over by the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.The Assembly has 93 members,...
for the
Free Trade PartyThe Free Trade Party , renamed in 1906 as the Anti-Socialist Party, was an Australian political party, formally organised from 1889 until 1909. It favoured the abolition of protective tariffs and other restrictions on trade, arguing that this would create greater prosperity for all...
, and held the seat until its abolition in 1894. He was Colonial Treasurer from March 1889 to July 1891 in Sir
Henry ParkesSir Henry Parkes, GCMG was an Australian statesman, the "Father of Federation." As the earliest advocate of a Federal Council of the then colonies of Australia, a precursor to the Federation of Australia, he is generally considered the most prominent of the Australian Founding Fathers...
fifth Free Trade Government and was a delegate to the 1890 conference on the
federation of AustraliaThe federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia formed a federation...
and the 1891 National Australasian Convention. In 1894 he was elected as the member for
BurwoodBurwood was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales, first created in 1894 with the abolition of multi-member electoral districts from part of Canterbury, and named after and including the Sydney suburb of Burwood. With the introduction of...
, which he held until 1898. He chaired the finance committee of the 1897 Australasian Federal Convention.
In 1901, he was elected to
federal parliamentThe House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the Parliament of Australia; it is the lower house, the upper house being the Senate.-Origins and role:The House is presided over by the Speaker....
as the first member for the seat of
WentworthThe Federal Division of Wentworth is a foundation division of the Australian Parliament, created at the Federation of the Australian Colonies as the Commonwealth of Australia. It was proclaimed in 1900 and was one of the original 75 divisions contested at the first federal election...
and was elected deputy leader of the Free Trade Party. He retired at the 1903 election to look after his business interests. He stood unsuccessfully for the state seat of
WilloughbyWilloughby is an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of New South Wales. It is represented by Gladys Berejiklian of the Liberal Party of Australia.-History:...
in 1913.
McMillan was divorced in 1891. He married Helen Maria O'Reilly in 1892 and they had two daughters. He died in his house, Althorne in the Sydney suburb of
Bellevue Hill Bellevue Hill is an eastern suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Bellevue Hill is located 5 kilometres east of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of the Municipality of Woollahra.-History:...
.
Honours
McMillan was created Knight Commander of the
Order of St Michael and St GeorgeThe Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent whilst he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III. It is named in honour of two military saints, St. Michael and St...
in 1901.
External links