Alban Riley

Alban Joseph Riley (8 June 1844 – 24 July 1914) was an Australian politician. He was mayor of the City of Sydney and a Member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.

Alderman Alban Joseph Riley J.P. (1885-1891) Mayor 1887

Early life

Riley was born at Balmain to softgoods merchant Alban Joseph Riley and Juliana Lyons. He was educated privately at Maitland, and in 1859 was apprenticed to a draper. He established his own branches around 1868 at Bathurst and in 1874 at Maitland. On 4 October 1870 he married Eleanor Harriett Birkenhead,^[1][2] the second daughter of William and Hannah Birkenhead, at Sydney.^[3]

In 1878 he visited India, Palestine, Europe and England. He established an export drapery business, AJ Riley & Co, with branches in London, Paris and Sydney. His private residence was Tulloona, in Gloucester Avenue, Burwood.^[3]

Politics

Riley's name over the entrance to the Sydney Corn Exchange building

Riley was a Burwood alderman in 1884. He served on Sydney City Council from 1885 to 1891 and was mayor in 1887. He first stood for the New South Wales Legislative Assembly at the 1885 election for Canterbury, but was unsuccessful by a margin of 133 votes (0.8%).^[4] In 1887 he was elected to the Legislative Assembly as a Free Trade member for South Sydney, finishing at the head of the poll, but was defeated in 1889 with a swing to the Protectionists.^[5] Appointed to the New South Wales Legislative Council in 1891, he was forced to resign in 1893 when he was declared bankrupt.^[1][6] He was alleged to have continued trading and obtaining credit despite his bankruptcy.^[3]

Later life

Riley died at his home Tulloona, Park Road, Burwood on 24 July 1914(1914-07-24) (aged 70),^[1][7][8] survived by Eleanor,^[9] five sons and five daughters.^[3] He was buried in Rookwood Cemetery on 26 July 1914.^[10]

Legacy

The Corn Exchange built in 1887 has his name and that he was mayor in 1887 over the corner door.

References

1. "Mr Alban Joseph Riley (1844-1914)". Former members of the Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
2. Rutledge, Martha (1976). "Riley, Alban Joseph". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943.
3. McCormack, Terri (2011). "Riley, Alban Joseph". Dictionary of Sydney. Dictionary of Sydney Trust. Retrieved 2 September 2021.  This article incorporates text available under the CC BY-SA 2.0 license.
4. Green, Antony. "1885 Canterbury". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 20 April 2020.
5. Green, Antony. "Elections for the District of South Sydney". New South Wales Election Results 1856-2007. Parliament of New South Wales. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
6. "A big bankruptcy". The Australian Star. 24 November 1893. p. 5. Retrieved 19 March 2019 – via Trove.
7. "Family Notices". The Sydney Morning Herald. 25 July 1914. p. 18. Retrieved 19 March 2019 – via Trove.
8. "Death of Mr A J Riley". The Maitland Daily Mercury. 27 July 1914. p. 4. Retrieved 19 March 2019 – via Trove.
9. "Death of Mrs A J Riley". The Sydney Morning Herald. 10 August 1922. p. 4. Retrieved 2 September 2021 – via Trove.
10. "Funeral of Mr A J Riley". The Sydney Morning Herald. 27 July 1914. p. 10. Retrieved 19 March 2019 – via Trove.

External links

• "State celebrities". The Wollondilly Press. 7 December 1912. p. 3. Retrieved 19 March 2019 – via Trove.
• "Alban Joseph Riley". City of Sydney.
• "Political". Australian Town and Country Journal. 25 June 1887. p. 13 – via Trove.

 

New South Wales Legislative Assembly
Preceded by John Davies Archibald Forsyth Joseph Olliffe James Toohey	Member for South Sydney 1887–1889 With: Bernhard Wise George Withers James Toohey	Succeeded by Walter Edmunds James Martin William Traill James Toohey
Civic offices
Preceded by John Young	Mayor of Sydney 1887	Succeeded by John Harris