Alderman Who?

One of our on-going projects is to draw up biographical details of Manly’s early Aldermen, who were a fascinating bunch. Of the 193 individuals who have been Aldermen or Councillors, we have photographs of all but 24. We may never find photos of some of the 19th century Aldermen, of course. Web-based sources have opened up new avenues of research, however. For example, until recently we knew very little about Alderman Walter Hussey Vivian (after whom Vivian Street is named). He was elected Alderman on 8 February 1890, but did not manage to attend a full Council meeting until 1 May that year. A supporter of Mayor John Cameron, it is hard to avoid the conclusion that he was only there to make up the numbers. His frequent absences were due to his being simultaneously the MLA for the seat of The Hastings and Manning from April 1890 to June 1891, where he represented the Free Trade interest. As he also had a share-broking business in Sydney, to which he devoted much of his time, it is hard to avoid the conclusion that he was about the most useless Alderman Manly has ever had.
He was probably born in Dorset in 1852; his father became a prominent and wealthy share-dealer in London, and Walter entered the family business. He emigrated to Australia some time between 1876 and 1879 with his wife Eliza, who bore him five daughters, the last of whom was born at Manly in 1885. He was active in local land dealings, and built himself a large two-storey house named The Chalet, just off Hilltop Crescent. His three years on the Council were uncreative; typically, he was against the formation of a public library. He attended his last Council meeting on 10 January 1893, and lost his seat in the Council elections of 7 February 1893. He retained his membership of the Sydney Stock Exchange until 1903, then left NSW, ‘possibly for South Africa’, speculates one source. He features in a group photograph held in the ASX collection. The Chalet was demolished in the 1930s.