Alexander Hay – A Brief History

A man from very humble beginnings, Alexander Hay was born in Dunfermline, Scotland in 1820. Following his father’s death in 1823 his mother Susan was left alone to bring up her two sons, Robert and Alexander. Alexander, at the age of 18 applied for and received a free passage to emigrate to Australia under the Wakefield plan, sailing on 25th November 1838 in the barque the “Planters”, the journey taking 6 months and arriv-ing in Port Adelaide on 15th May 1839.

Alexander grasped his opportunities in his new country, firstly on the wharves and soon became a clerk for the South Australian Company and thence into business after which in 1840 he took up farming at Gumeracha. In a few years Alexander returned to Adelaide and commenced his own grocery and hardware business in Rundle Street dealing in grain, building and mining tools.

Alexander married Miss Agnes Kelly in 1845 and they were to have eight children of which four were to survive infancy. In 1855 Alexander Hay bought 65 acres at Burnside for £1,561.00 and built his home “Linden” which became one of Adelaide’s most beautiful homes he also pur-chased Nor’ West Bend Station at Morgan on River Murray and so began his sheep run interests.

In 1862 Alexander joined The Adelaide City Council and 3 years later became a member of the Central Road Board (Highways Department). In 1853 he was elected to South Australia’s first House of Assembly as the member for Gumeracha, where he held the portfolio of Commissioner of Public Works. In 1858 Alexander had a hand in the passing of the Torrens Real Property Act, and in later years he was also involved in the le-galising of marriage to a deceased wife’s sister; the Overland Telegraph Scheme and assisted with the legislation for the selling of Government lands on credit.

Alexander Hay was also joint proprietor of Adelaide’s leading newspapers, the “Register” and “Observer”.
In 1861 Alexander Hay retired from Parliament, having been selected to act by the Adelaide Chamber of Commerce to be their representative at the London Congress in 1862. The Hay family remained in Britain until 1867 and upon returning to Adelaide via Melbourne, Alexander soon re-gained his parliamentary seat of Gumeracha which he held until being elected to the seat of East Torrens in 1870. It was in that year that Mrs Agnes Hay died of Brights disease in her early fifties.

In 1872 Alexander married Agnes Grange Gosse and they were to have 4 children between 1873 and 1876.
Alexander continued as a member of the Legislative Council until 1891 and he also became the first “Chief” of the Caledonian Society in 1881. During this period Alexander was chosen as South Australia’s Honorary Commissioner for the Colinderies Exhibition in London in 1885 and had become president of YMCA as well as on the board of South Australia Gas Company and in 1887 took his place as a trustee of the Wyatt Benevo-lent Institution and was elected a director of the South Australian Insurance Company. In 1891 Alexander Hay retired from politics and from his position on the Board of the Bank of Adelaide. It is believed that Alexander had been offered a knighthood but had refused to accept. The Hays visited Britain again in 1893.

Alexander Hay died at Mt Breckan on February 4th 1898.