Family background
William Percy McElhone was born in Sydney on 22 December 1871, the fourth son of Alderman John McElhone (1833-98) and his wife Mary Jane (d.1894), née Browne. In 1906 at Randwick, he married Donalda MacInnes. He died on 21 April 1932, survived by his wife.
Occupation & interests
William McElhone was educated at St Aloysius College, Sydney, and served his legal apprenticeship under HS Williams, for many years a Solicitor to the Water Board. He was admitted to practise as a Solicitor on 20 August 1898. He was joined as a partner by the late Mr John Meillon and later by Mr A Barnes and his nephew F E McElhone. He was a senior partner in the legal firm of Messrs. WP McElhone and Company. He represented Australia at the Olympic Conference in 1926. He belonged to a family which provided long service to Sydney Council: his father was Alderman from 1878 to 1882, his brother Arthur Joseph McElhone (1868-1946), was Alderman from 1899 to 1946 and Lord Mayor in 1935, and his nephew John Fitzroy McElhone (1900-70) was Alderman for Fitzroy Ward from 1946 to 1963. He was a keen golfer and a member of Blue Mountains Golf Club.
Community activity
William McElhone was a member of the Red Cross Society for sick and wounded soldiers. He was a founding member of the Australian Board of Cricket Control, a Trustee of the Sydney Cricket Ground, and President of the Cricket Association.
Honours & awards
William McElhone was created an M.B.E. in 1920.
Local government service
William McElhone was Alderman for Bligh Ward, 9 July 1908 to 30 November 1915 and for Lang Ward, 2 December 1918 to 31 December 1927. He was a member of the Works Committee, 1909-10 and in 1927, the Electric Lighting Committee, 1909-27, the Finance Committee, 1909-12 and 1919-21. He was a member of the Health and By-Laws Committee, 1919-29 and served as Lord Mayor in 1922.
References
City of Sydney Archives: Aldermen’s Files; Photos: CRS 54/96; 54/169; 54/281; 54/560; and THC 88/334; 88/367 and 89/914
Society of Australian Genealogists: AGCI Index
Who’s Who in Australia 1927-1928