Alexander Macleay
Alexander Macleay (born June 24, 1767 in Ross-shire , Scotland , † July 18, 1848 in New South Wales ) was a British-Australian politician and entomologist .
Life
His father William was Provost of the City of Wick . Macleay received a good education and in 1795 became a senior officer in the Prisoner of War Office. In 1797 he became head of the Department of Correspondence of the Transport Board of the Royal Navy and, in 1806, until his retirement in 1818, its secretary. In 1825 he became colonial secretary for New South Wales , which he remained until 1837, and lived in Sydney from 1826. From 1843 to 1846 he was speaker of the Legislative Assembly. He died in 1848 after a carriage accident.
He was considered an excellent entomologist and botanist (with a garden in his house in Elizabeth Bay with rare plants known at the time), but did not publish anything himself. His insect collection (especially butterflies) was one of the best private collections of its time. He also collected bird skins and sent them to the Linnean Society in London. He is considered one of the founders of the Australian Museum .
He was married (his wife Eliza Barclay died in 1847) and had 17 children. His son William Sharp Macleay was also an entomologist and inherited his Sydney country estate (Elizabeth Bay House) and his collection.
He was a Fellow of the Linnean Society of London (1795) and its secretary from 1798 to 1825 and he was a Fellow of the Royal Society .
The Macleay River in Australia is named after it, as is Graphium macleayanus , a butterfly belonging to the knightly moths.
Web links
- Dictionary of Australian Biography (English)
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Macleay, Alexander |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | British-Australian politician and entomologist |
| DATE OF BIRTH | June 24, 1767 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Ross-shire , Scotland |
| DATE OF DEATH | July 18, 1848 |
| Place of death | New South Wales |