William James Cleary (1885 - 1973)

Born 29 Dec 1885 in Redfern, New South Wales, Australia

Ancestors

Died 20 Jul 1973 at age 87 in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia

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Biography

William James Cleary (1885-1973)

William Cleary was born in the Colony of New South Wales (1788-1900)

Birth
William James Cleary was born 29 December 1885 at Redfern, New South Wales, Australia. He was the son of Thomas Cleary and Elsie Rose. ^[1]

Marriage
William James Cleary married Melanie Newton Lewis 20 April 1912 at Manthorpe Memorial Church, Unley, South Australia,l Australia. ^[2]

Marriage Notice

"Family Notices" The Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1889 - 1931) 1 June 1912: Page 18.

CLEARY—LEWIS.—On the 20th April, at Manthorpe Memorial Church, Unley, by the Rev. Geo. Rayner, Wm. James, son of Thomas P. Cleary, of Marrickville, Sydney, to Melanie Newton, daughter of the late John Newton Lewis, of Adelaide. ^[3]

Children

1. Joan Lewis Cleary (1913-1989)
2. Ruth Petrie Cleary (1914-2010)
3. Melanie Newton Cleary (1915-1916)
4. Betty Newton Cleary (1917-1993)
5. Millicent Babs Cavill Cleary (1919-?)
6. Pauline Ethel Cleary (1923-2000)

Death
William James Cleary passed away 20 July 1973 at Sydney, New South Wales, Australia. ^[4]

Newspaper Reports of his Achievements

William Cleary is Notable.

"NOTES AND COMMENTS." The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954) 14 January 1916: Page 9.

The Sydney Chamber of Commerce has been informed by the University that the annual prize awarded by the chamber to the student obtaining the best pass in the third year course of economics and commerce for the year 1915 was won by William James Cleary. ^[5]

1929

Goulburn Evening Penny Post (NSW : 1881 - 1940), Friday 8 November 1929, page 6

STATE RAILWAYS New Commissioner ?

The State Cabinet has offered the position of Chief Commissioner for Railways to Mr. William James Cleary, general manager of Tooth, and Co., Ltd., brewers. Recenty the Cablinet decided to ap point a man of proved busines ability who was not a Public servant. Ministers admitted yesterday that the position had been offered to a prominent Sydney business man, salary of £7500 a year, but they declined to divulge the name until advised of acceptance of the offer. It is anticipated that Mr. Cleary will inform the Government of his decision within the next day or two. He has not sought the position in the railways, and at the present time is one of the highest-paid officials engaged in private enterprise. ^[6]

1934

Commonwealth of Australia Gazette (National : 1901 - 1973), Thursday 19 July 1934 (No.42), page 1082

APPOINTMENT OF WILLIAM JAMES CLEARY, ESQUIRE,

AS COMMISSIONER AND CHAIRMAN OF THE AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING COMMISSION.

HIS Excellency the Governor-General in Council has approved of the appointment of William James Cleary, Esquire, as a Commissioner and Chairman of the Australian Broadcasting Commission for a period of three years, as on and from 3rd July, 1934, at a salary of £500 per annum.— (Ex. Min. Nos. 31 and 32.) ^[7]

1945

Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), Wednesday 28 February 1945, page 4

STRONG MAN OF A.B.C.

BY A SPECIAL CORRESPONDENT

William James Cleary, whose resignation as chairman of the Australian Broad-casting Commission remains to be fully explained, has made his reputation chiefly as an administrator.

MR CLEARY, who will be 60 this year, made his own studious way to comfortable circumstances. He has demonstarted before that he does not depend upon the favor of governments, and he has spoken strongly against the Interference of Ministers of successive Governments in A.B.C. affairs.

He lives austerely, despite the fact that he spent 29 years at Tooth's brewery in Sydney, and was general manager there when he resigned in 1929 to become Chief Commissioner of the New South Wales Railways.

Walking in the Blue Mountains is his hobby. He is a good amateur botanist.

Mr Cleary, slight and grey, talks incisively and well, with a dash of mimicry when in the mood. His keen mind is well expressed in his compact and lucid letters. He was a night student in economics at Sydney University, and took his degree there. Then the student turned teacher, and he lectured on economic history and business principles from 1918 to 1929.

Afterwards, he was on the Sydney University Senate. He has five daughters. When the first wave of the de pression lapped New South Wales, Sir Thomas Bavin appealed to Mr Cleary to put his business ability at the disposal of the railways.

Mr Cleary refused the salary of £7500 that was offered, took £5000 and gave half of that away. He clashed with the Lang Gov ernment and resigned in 1932. "Is it a crime," he asked, "that because a man wishes to serve his country he should be so un savory to one party mainly be cause he was appointed by a party of a different policy?"

He showed again that money was not at stake. He was offered the managing directorship of Mark Foys, a large Sydney drapery firm, at a very high salary. Instead, he accepted, in 1934, the chairmanship of the A.B.C. — at £10 a week. Later, an honorarium of £2000 was added.

Mr Cleary had not asked for in creased payment or reward, and the honorarium was in recogni tion of his special work for 18 months in the absence of a gen eral manager. His regular salary of £500 was for part-time work only.

The Lyons Government appointed him to the A.B.C. It was clear that, for all his material suc cess, he did not fall into the cate gory of the "hard-faced business man." Two years before the appointment, a committee representing art and musical interests in Sydney had wired the Prime Minister that Mr Cleary should be considered for the chairmanship of the A.B.C., which had been recast on B.B.C. lines. "We feel," the committee added, "that, because of his noted ability and high integrity, he would not only relieve Cabinet of a difficult problem, but would win the approval of the entire Commonwealth." The brewery clerk of 45 years ago has come a long way. What, next? ^[8]

Sources

1. ↑ Birth: NSW, Australia BDM Index Name: CLEARY WILLIAM J | Reg. No. 10842/1886| Father: THOMAS| Mother: ELSIE| Reg. REDFERN, NSW, Australia
2. ↑ Marriage: Genealogy SA CLEARY William James| married| LEWIS Melanie Newton| Reg. Adelaide| Reg. No. 251/335| Year: 1912| Reg. South Australia, Australia
3. ↑ Family Notices (1912, June 1). The Advertiser (Adelaide, SA : 1889 - 1931), p. 18. Retrieved August 9, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article5348181
4. ↑ Death: NSW, Australia BDM Index Name: CLEARY WILLIAM JAMES| Reg. No. 57976/1973 | Father: THOMAS PATRICK| Mother: —ROSE| Reg. ST LEONARDS, NSW, Australia
5. ↑ NOTES AND COMMENTS. (1916, January 14). The Sydney Morning Herald (NSW : 1842 - 1954), p. 9. Retrieved August 9, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article15636783
6. ↑ STATE RAILWAYS (1929, November 8). Goulburn Evening Penny Post (NSW : 1881 - 1940), p. 6 (DAILY and EVENING). Retrieved August 9, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article99326789
7. ↑ APPOINTMENT OF WILLIAM JAMES CLEARY, ESQUIRE, AS COMMISSIONER AND CHAIRMAN OF THE AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING COMMISSION. (1934, July 19). Commonwealth of Australia Gazette (National : 1901 - 1973), p. 1082. Retrieved August 9, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article232620660
8. ↑ STRONG MAN OF A.B.C. (1945, February 28). The Herald (Melbourne, Vic. : 1861 - 1954), p. 4. Retrieved August 9, 2022, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article245342280

See also:

• Australian Dictionary of Biography Cleary, William James (1885–1973) by Alan Thomas
• Alan Thomas, 'Cleary, William James (1885–1973)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, https://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/cleary-william-james-5677/text9591, published first in hardcopy 1981, accessed online 9 August 2022.

This article was published in hardcopy in Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 8, (Melbourne University Press), 1981

• Cleary, Sheila (1981), 'The Genealogy of James Roy Cleary' in the possession of Darren Gladman, 11 October 2017