William Clarke

Who was William Clarke?

William Clarke was an Australian businessman and member of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly.

Clarke was born in Melbourne, son of William Joseph Sayers Clarke by his marriage with Miss Mary Ann Welsford. William Clarke married Mary Ann Mortimer on 25 June 1862 in Melbourne, later moving to Sydney. Clarke was a Justice of the Peace for the colonies of New South Wales and Victoria, Australia.

On 24 November 1880 Clarke was elected member for Orange in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly, until being defeated at the general election in January 1889. Clarke was Minister of Justice in the administration of Sir Henry Parkes, from 20 January 1887 to 10 January 1889. He held important positions in connection with financial institutions in the colonies, and became Managing Director of the London branch of the Standard Bank of Australia. He was a member of the New South Wales Commission in London for the Colonial and Indian Exhibition of 1886.

Clarke died on 9 March 1903 in Cape Town, Western Cape, South Africa.