William Thomas Reay CBE VD (1858 - 1929)

Born 10 Nov 1858 in Balmain, New South Wales (Australia)

Husband of Lucinda Braithwaite (Broadbent) Reay — married 1882 in Hotham Hill, Victoria, Australia

Died 11 Nov 1929 at age 71 in Woolwich, London, England

Biography

William Reay CBE VD is Notable.

Lieutenant Colonel William Thomas Reay CBE VD was an Australian journalist, newspaper editor and politician, as well as a police and an army officer.

William Thomas Reay was born on 10th November 1858 at Balmain, New South Wales, Australia. He was the eldest child of English-born sailmaker, Edward Reay, and his Irish-born wife, Johanna Brennen.^[1] As a boy he moved with his family to Williamstown, Victoria, where he was educated at the Church of England School. He ran away to sea when he was thirteen, but left his ship at Dunedin, New Zealand, and worked as a clerk before working his way home. He then attended King's College, East Melbourne and joined the Victoria Sugar Company at Yarraville, where he worked for nine years.

Reay married Lucinda Broadbent on 10th April 1882 at Hotham Hill, Melbourne.^[2] They had two boys both of whom died in infancy and five daughters.

Newspaper Career

In June 1883 he bought the Coleraine Albion, followed by the Port Melbourne Standard. From 1887 to 1890 he was editor of the Hamilton Spectator, and from 1891 he was leader-writer and assistant editor of the Melbourne Daily Telegraph. When it closed in 1892 he moved to the Melbourne Weekly Times and then to The Herald as literary editor and later associate editor. He resumed his newspaper career following the Boer War, becoming The Herald's managing editor in 1904. In 1911 he moved to London as The Herald's representative and stayed in England until his death.

Military Career

William Reay CBE VD is a Military Veteran.
Served in the Victorian Military Force 1899-1900
1st Battalion, Victorian Mounted Rifles

In 1886, Reay obtained a commission in the Victorian Mounted Rifles. He commanded a detachment at Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee in London in 1897. In October 1899 he accompanied the first Australian contingent to the South African War, serving in the area of the Orange River, and was awarded the Queen's South Africa Medal. Reay also wrote articles as a war correspondent for The Herald and the South Australian Register until he returned ill after the capture of Bloemfontein. From Australia he published Australians in War (1900), which was widely distributed to Victorian soldiers. He retired from the Mounted Rifles in 1903 with the rank of Lieutenant Colonel, being awarded the Volunteer Officer's Decoration (VD).

Political Career

In 1900, on his third attempt, Reay was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly as the member for East Bourke Boroughs.

Police Career

After the outbreak of the First World War Reay joined the Metropolitan Special Constabulary, being appointed a divisional commander and in 1915 Inspector-General of Divisions. For this work he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 1917 and promoted to Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in the 1920 civilian war honours.

He passed away, one day after his 71st birthday anniversary, on 11th November 1929 at Woolwich Hospital, Woolwich, London, England.^[3] His remains were cremated at West Norwood Cemetery, where his remains were then scattered, as per his request.^[4] He was survived by his wife and their five daughters, two of whom had served as nurses, one winning the Royal Red Cross with Queen Alexandra's Imperial Military Nursing Service Reserve, while the other was with the Australian Voluntary Hospital.

Sources

1. ↑ New South Wales Birth Index #2420/1858
2. ↑ Victoria Marriage Index #2661/1882
3. ↑ UK FreeBMD Death Index Dec qtr 1929, vol 1d, page 935
4. ↑ Obituary, The Times, 14 Nov 1929

• Langmore, Diane. 'Reay, William Thomas (1858–1929)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, published first in hardcopy 1988; accessed online 21 Jul 2019.
• Wikipedia profile: William Thomas Reay; accessed 21 Jul 2019.