The Perth suit of power

Chairman, Perth Town Trust (1838-1858)

George Leake

Richard Hinds

Walter Boyd Andrews

Thomas Helms

James Purkis

Thomas Helms

Henry Laroche Cole

George Shenton Sr

George Shenton Sr; Sir Luke Leake

George Shenton Sr

Chairman, Perth City Council (1858-1879)

Henry Laroche Cole

Julian Carr

Julian Carr, Alfred Hillman, George Haysom 

Julian Carr

Julian Carr, George Glyde

George Glyde

George Randell

George Shenton

Sir Stephen Henry Parker

Mayor, Perth City Council (1880-1929)

George Shenton

Stephen Henry Parker, George Shenton

George Shenton

George Randell

George Shenton

Dr Edward Scott

Edward Keane

Sir Stephen Henry Parker

Alexander Forrest

Henry Saunders

Alexander Forrest

William Brookman

Sir Stephen Henry Parker

William Loton

Harry Brown

Sydney Stubbs

Thomas Molloy

Richard Paul Vincent

Thomas Molloy

John Prowse

Charles Nathan

John Nicholson

Frank R Rea

Sir William Lathlain

James T Franklin

Lord Mayor, Perth City Council (since 1929)

Hon. James T Franklin

Hon. Sir William Lathlain

Hon. James T Franklin

Joseph J Poynton

Charles Harper

Thomas Meagher

Sir Joseph Totterdell

James Murray

Sir Henry ("Harry") R. Howard

Charles J.B. Veryard

Sir Thomas Wardle

Ernest Lee-Steere

Sir Fred Chaney

Mick Michael

Charles Hopkins

Rt Hon. Reg Withers

Dr Peter Nattrass

Lisa Scaffidi

Mayor may not

Jewish genius ensures an early place
& you could be Celt if you show your face
the establishment has Parkers aplenty
Built on the bones of many a Jones
the municipal immortal
the guy in charge of construction
The Smith that tends the furnace

A straight stretch of streetwise
fill-ins and fall guys
Eventually reaching Independent women
and just so John So

In training for other controls
or returning from duty

Waiting at tables
even

Lords Mayor of Melbourne

Mayor of Melbourne

Henry Condell 1842
Henry Moor
Sir James Palmer
Henry Moor
Andrew Russell
William Bell
Augustus Greeves
William Nicholson
John Thomas Smith
John Hodgson
John Thomas Smith
Henry Swallows Walsh
Richard Eades
John Thomas Smith
Robert Bennett
Edward Cohen
John Thomas Smith
George Wragg
William Bayles
William Williams
James Butters
Thomas Moubray
Samuel Arness
Thomas McPherson
Orlando Fenwick
Thomas O'Grady
John McIlwraith
James Gatehouse
Alexander Kennedy Smith
James Paterson
John Pigdon
Joseph Story
George Meares
Cornelius Job Ham
James Dodgshun
Charles Smith
Godfrey Downes Carter
James Cooper Stewart
William Cain
Sir Benjamin Benjamin
Matthew Lang
Sir Arthur Snowden
William Strong
Sir Malcolm McEacharn
Sir Samuel Gillott

Lord Mayor of Melbourne

Sir Samuel Gillott
Sir Malcolm McEacharn
Charles Pleasance
Sir Henry Weedon
James Burston
Thomas Davey
Sir David Hennessy
Frank Stapley
William Whyte Cabena
John Aikman
Sir John Swanson
Sir William Brunton
Sir Stephen Morell
Harold Luxton
Sir Harold Gengoult Smith
Sir Alexander Wales
Edward Campbell
Sir Arthur Coles
Sir Frank Beaurepaire
Sir Thomas Nettlefold
Sir Francis Connelly
Sir James Disney
Oliver Nilsen
William Brens
Robert Solly
Sir Francis Selleck
Sir Frederick Thomas
Brigadier Sir Bernard Evans
Maurice Nathan
Edward Curtis
Ian Beaurepaire
Reginald Talbot
Edward Best
Alwynne Rowlands
Alan Whalley
Ron Walker
Donald Osborne
Irvin Rockman
Ralph Bernardi
John Woodruff

Peter Thorley, Neil Smith, Richard Allston

John Willian Gardner
Kevin Chamberlin
Ewin Beacham
Thomas Lynch
Trevor Huggard
Alexis Ord
Winsome McCaughey
William Deveney
Richard Wynne
Richard Meldrum
Desmond Clark
Alan Watson

Kevan Gosper, John Rose, Catherine Walter, Kevin Courtney

Ivan Deveson
Peter Costigan
John So
Robert Doyle

Afire

What is likely to follow the warmest winter and record hot summer days this year? How about bush fires threatening. Fires that have already destroyed nearly two hundred homes - though our risk is the Mt Victoria fire according to my partner on the ground. We are currently surrounded by places that have been affected, and so many fires so close that we can only hope are routed and stopped from joining. Bushfire brigade has had to do some serious backburning to avoid that happening; which must carry it's own risk.  I haven't been on the Great Western Highway, even though our street runs onto it (thankfully, as a result of the roadworks, we have a slip road to get us to the village). The fire engines that were continuous on the first day have stopped.

We have so far survived what has taken people's houses.

Our holiday away at Ettalong Beach will have to wait.

Key to the city

Those clusters of three names are the times when there were commissioners running things. The position otherwise was Mayor through the nineteenth century, becoming Lord Mayor in 1903 while Thomas Hughes was incumbent.

The names denote the prominent force in the city: Anglo Saxon males who sport no nonsense names that any respectable citizen might possess. What's your name lad? Benjamin Palmer sir. Righto then, in you go.

I was most struck at the thought of becoming mayor of the capital city that bears your own name. Mercifully, Burdekin retreats from the grotto of Parkers and Smiths to deflect some of the overt Sydney-ness.

Another amusing* game is to do a scorecard of any mayors, lord mayors, or deputy commissioners who bear the same name

McDermott (2), Smith (2), Sutherland (2), Moore (2), Harris (2), McElhone (2)

(*or would have been amusing forty years ago when parlour games provided a distraction)

Mayors, Lord and otherwise, of Sydney

Charles Windeyer 1824

John Hosking
James Wilshire
George Allen
Henry McDermott
Thomas Broughton
Joshua Frey Josephson
Edward Flood
George Hill
William Thurlow
Daniel Egan
Gilbert Elliott, Frederick Orme Darval, John Rae
George Thornton
John Williams
George Smith
James Murphy
John Sutherland
James Oatley
Thomas Spence
William Speer
John Woods
John Sutton
Charles Moore
Walter Renny
Michael Chapman
James Merriman
Stephen Styles Goold
Benjamin Palmer
James Merriman
Charles Roberts
Robert Fowler
John Harris
John Hardie
Thomas Playfair
John Young
Alban Riley
John Harris
Sydney Burdekin
Sir William Manning
Samuel Lees
Isaac Ives
Sir Matthew Harris
Sir James Graham
Sir Thomas Hughes
Samuel Lees
Allen Taylor
Sir Thomas Hughes
Sir Allen Taylor
George Clarke
Sir Arthur Cocks
Richard Watkins Richards
Richard Meagher
James Joynton Smith
John English
Sir Richard Watkins Richards
William Patrick Fitzgerald
William Lambert
William McElhone
David Gilpin
Patrick Stokes
John Mostyn
E.P. Fleming, J. Garlick,  H.E. Morton, Gordon Bennett
Ernest Marks
Joseph Jackson
Sir Samuel Walder
Richard Hagon
Sir Alfred Parker
Arthur McElhone
Archibald Howie
Norman Nock
Stanley Crick
Reg Bartley
Ernest O'Dea
Pat Hills
Harry Jensen
John Armstrong
Vernon Treatt, John Shaw, William Pettingell
Sir Laurence Emmet McDermott
David Griffin
Nicholas Shehadie
Leo Port
Nelson Meers
Doug Sutherland
Sir Eric Neal, Sir Nicholas Shehadie, Norman Oakes
Jeremy Bingham
Frank Sartor
Lucy Turnbull
Tony Pooley, Garry Payne, Lucy Turnbull
Clover Moore

Played your ism

Nothing remotely funny about distilling from a distance the creative capital that should reward its originator. It just got me thinking how different that sketch from last entry would look after an edit. Writers who can bowdlerise are ready to turn your wayward but inspired piece into a streamlined but stolen work.

Some of the more blatant cases in other fields such as music do make me wonder if the idea is to become so rich that, by the time your copyright theft is uncovered, you can continue, while the obscure composer is unlikely to ever reach the heights of fame and fortune, even with compensation.

Regardless of the flakes who haunt creative channels, we need to keep on going as artists with stories to tell and visions to bring to life. If we allow our artistic output and our creative control to be usurped by intellectual property theft then we're letting them win. Sure, they're going to run out of material without artisans and entrepreneurs sketching their plans and blueprints but too much damage is done to those whom they leech off, in the meantime.