Lewis Wolfe Levy (13 June 1815 – 25 January 1885) was a 19th-century Australian colonial politician and businessman.

Life and career

Born in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

, the son of merchant Benjamin Wolfe Levy (1773–1813) and his wife Martha ''née'' Levy (died 1861), he emigrated to

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

in 1840 and established himself at

Maitland Maitland may refer to: Places *Maitland, New South Wales, Australia **City of Maitland, a local government area * Maitland, South Australia, Australia * Maitland, Tasmania, Australia * Maitland, Hants County, Nova Scotia, Canada * Maitland, Ontari ...

, before moving to Tamworth. There, Levy took over an established store and went on to make it into one of the most significant businesses in Tamworth. In 1849 he formed a business partnership with his cousin Abraham Cohen. He was also a gold buyer during the gold rush period in the 1850s. He moved back to Maitland in 1854 and where, in partnership with his cousins David and Samuel Cohen, he helped to run ''David Cohen & Co.'' and was central in expanding that business. His business skills were called on to help manage a number other enterprises. Levy was a director of the Hunter River Steam Navigation Company, the

Australian Gas Light Company The Australian Gas Light Company (AGL) was an Australian gas and electricity retailer. It was formed in Sydney in 1837 and supplied town gas for the first public lighting of a street lamp in Sydney in 1841. AGL was the second company to list on ...

, the United Insurance Company, the Newcastle Wallsend Coal Co. and the

Commercial Banking Company of Sydney The Commercial Banking Company of Sydney Limited, also known as the CBC, or CBC Bank, was a bank based in Sydney, Australia. It was established in 1834, and in 1982 merged with the National Bank of Australasia to form National Australia Bank. Hi ...

. Yarrowman, a pastoral run on the

Liverpool Plains The Liverpool Plains are an extensive agricultural area covering about of the north-western slopes of New South Wales in Australia. These plains are a region of prime agricultural land bounded to the east by the Great Dividing Range, to the s ...

was his by 1871, and Levy was a partner in seven other runs. Also active in civic service, Levy served as a Justice of the Peace for NSW from October 1858. He was living in Sydney by 1862 where he was a director of the

Royal Prince Alfred Hospital The Royal Prince Alfred Hospital (abbreviated RPAH or RPA) is a large teaching hospital in Sydney, Australia, located on Missenden Road in Camperdown. It is a teaching hospital of the Central Clinical School of the Sydney Medical School at the ...

and a member of the

board of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

of the Indigent Blind Institution. President of the Macquarie Street Synagogue in Sydney from 1862 to 1874 and again from 1876 to 1877 when it closed, he also served on the board of the Sydney Hebrew School. In 1879 he laid the foundation stone of the Maitland Synagogue. In 1845, Levy married Julia Solomon, who came to New South Wales in 1835. The couple had fifteen children. Frequent and damaging floods in the Maitland area and the need for

flood mitigation Flood management or flood control are methods used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters. Flooding can be caused by a mix of both natural processes, such as extreme weather upstream, and human changes to waterbodies and ru ...

prompted him to stand for the

New South Wales Parliament The Parliament of New South Wales, formally the Legislature of New South Wales, (definition of "The Legislature") is the bicameral legislative body of the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW). It consists of the Monarch, the New South Wale ...

in 1871. Levy was elected to the Legislative Assembly for

, but he did not re-contest in

1872 Events January * January 12 – Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first ruler crowned in that city in over 500 years. *January 20 – The Cavite mutiny was an uprising of Filipino military personnel of Fort S ...

. He was elected for

West Maitland Maitland () is a city in the Hunter Valley of New South Wales, Australia and the seat of Maitland City Council, situated on the Hunter River, New South Wales, Hunter River approximately by road north of Sydney and north-west of Newcastle, New S ...

in 1874, but again retired at the

general election A general election is an electoral process to choose most or all members of a governing body at the same time. They are distinct from By-election, by-elections, which fill individual seats that have become vacant between general elections. Gener ...

later that year. In 1880 he was appointed to the

NSW Legislative Council The New South Wales Legislative Council, often referred to as the upper house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of New South Wales, parliament of the Australian state of New South Wales. Along with the New South Wales Legislative As ...

as a representative of the Jewish community and continued in that role till his death. Levy died on 25 January 1885, aged 69, survived by his wife and thirteen of their children. His estate was valued for probate at over £245,000. Most of his estate was left to family and friends with £3,875 bequeathed to various charitable institutions. An elaborate drinking fountain was built in the

Sydney Botanic Gardens The Royal Botanic Garden, Sydney is a heritage-listed major botanical garden, event venue and public recreation area located at Farm Cove on the eastern fringe of the Sydney central business district, in the City of Sydney local government are ...

in his memory by the Levy family in 1889. Made of polished red and white granite and featuring a bronze figure by sculptor

Charles Bell Birch Charles Bell Birch (28 September 1832 – 16 October 1893) was a British sculptor. Biography Birch was born at Brixton in south London, the son of the author and translator Jonathan Birch (translator), Jonathan Birch (1783–1847) and his wif ...

, it was unveiled by

Sir Henry Parkes Sir Henry Parkes, (27 May 1815 – 27 April 1896) was a colonial Australian politician and the longest-serving non-consecutive premier of the Colony of New South Wales, the present-day state of New South Wales in the Commonwealth of Australi ...

Premier of New South Wales The premier of New South Wales is the head of government in the state of New South Wales, Australia. The Government of New South Wales follows the Westminster system, Westminster Parliamentary System, with a Parliament of New South Wales actin ...

, at a ceremony on 17 December 1889.

References

Sources

* * Levy family, the (1886) ''Memoir; Lewis Wolfe Levy'', Sydney, John Sands, 29

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Levy, Lewis 1815 births 1885 deaths Australian justices of the peace Members of the New South Wales Legislative Assembly Members of the New South Wales Legislative Council 19th-century Australian politicians 19th-century Australian businesspeople Jewish Australian politicians Australian people of British-Jewish descent