John Beals Chandler
Encyclopedia
Sir John Beals Chandler was the Lord Mayor
of Brisbane
from 1940 to 1952, and the Member for the Queensland Legislative Assembly
district of Hamilton from 1943 to 1947.
, Norfolk
, England
, on 21 February 1887. From a poor family, he left school at the age of 8, and later emigrated to Queensland
in 1907 to work as a sugarcane
cutter.
In 1912 he married Lydia Isabel Parish in Brisbane
. They had four sons, two of whom were killed in the Second World War.
In 1930 he founded the Brisbane radio station 4BC
(4 "Beals Chandler") to stimulate demand for his radio sets. He went on to own various other Queensland radio stations, including 4BH
in Brisbane.
district of Hamilton
as an Independent
in 1943. Shortly after his election, he founded the Queensland People's Party
. This party later absorbed the Queensland branch of the United Australia Party
, and became the Queensland branch of the Liberal Party of Australia
in 1948.
Chandler retired from the Legislative Assembly in 1947. He remained Lord Mayor of Brisbane until 1952, the year he was knighted, and remained chairman and managing director of Chandlers until his death.
Chandler died at home in St Lucia
, Brisbane in 1962. The Brisbane suburb of Chandler
was named after him.
Lord Mayor
The Lord Mayor is the title of the Mayor of a major city, with special recognition.-Commonwealth of Nations:* In Australia it is a political position. Australian cities with Lord Mayors: Adelaide, Brisbane, Darwin, Hobart, Melbourne, Newcastle, Parramatta, Perth, Sydney, and Wollongong...
of Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
from 1940 to 1952, and the Member for the Queensland Legislative Assembly
Queensland Legislative Assembly
The Queensland Legislative Assembly is the unicameral chamber of the Parliament of Queensland. Elections are held approximately once every three years. Voting is by the Optional Preferential Voting form of the Alternative Vote system...
district of Hamilton from 1943 to 1947.
Personal life
John Beals Chandler was born in BunwellBunwell
Bunwell is a parish situated in the county of Norfolk, England, approximately 7 miles south-east of Attleborough. The parish includes the hamlets of Bunwell Hill, Bunwell Street, Great Green, Little Green and Low Common...
, Norfolk
Norfolk
Norfolk is a low-lying county in the East of England. It has borders with Lincolnshire to the west, Cambridgeshire to the west and southwest and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the North Sea coast and to the north-west the county is bordered by The Wash. The county...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, on 21 February 1887. From a poor family, he left school at the age of 8, and later emigrated to Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
in 1907 to work as a sugarcane
Sugarcane
Sugarcane refers to any of six to 37 species of tall perennial grasses of the genus Saccharum . Native to the warm temperate to tropical regions of South Asia, they have stout, jointed, fibrous stalks that are rich in sugar, and measure two to six metres tall...
cutter.
In 1912 he married Lydia Isabel Parish in Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
. They had four sons, two of whom were killed in the Second World War.
Businesses
Chandler opened his first hardware store in Elizabeth St, Brisbane in 1913. Chandler increasingly focussed on electrical household appliances and opened a larger store as "J. B. Chandler & Co" in Adelaide St in 1923. This business grew to become the public company Chandlers Pty Ltd, with stores across Queensland and northern NSW, in 1938. Chandlers remained a family-controlled business until 1977.4BC
4BC is a radio station in Brisbane, Queensland on 1116kHz AM. 4BC is Brisbane's only commercial talkback station, using the promotional phrase "News Talk 1116". Like most talk radio stations, it caters to a predominantly conservative audience...
(4 "Beals Chandler") to stimulate demand for his radio sets. He went on to own various other Queensland radio stations, including 4BH
4BH
4BH is a radio station in Brisbane, the state capital of Queensland, Australia. Its analogue broadcast frequency is 882 KHz AM and markets itself for the baby boomer market. 4BH also broadcasts in digital using the dab+ format on the Brisbane 2 DAB ensemble channel 9B 204.640 MHz...
in Brisbane.
Brisbane City Council
A councillor for the Shire of Taringa before the 1925 amalgamation, Chandler was elected Lord Mayor in 1940 as the Citizens' Municipal Organisation candidate. He was reelected and served out 4 full terms as Lord Mayor.Queensland Legislative Assembly
Chandler was elected to the Queensland Legislative AssemblyQueensland Legislative Assembly
The Queensland Legislative Assembly is the unicameral chamber of the Parliament of Queensland. Elections are held approximately once every three years. Voting is by the Optional Preferential Voting form of the Alternative Vote system...
district of Hamilton
Electoral district of Hamilton (Queensland)
Hamilton was an electoral district of the Legislative Assembly in the Australian state of Queensland from 1932 to 1950.The district was based in the inner northeastern suburbs of Brisbane, and included the suburbs of Albion, Ascot, Eagle Farm, Hamilton and Hendra. It was a safe seat for the...
as an Independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
in 1943. Shortly after his election, he founded the Queensland People's Party
Queensland People's Party
The Queensland People's Party was a conservative political party in Queensland, Australia.Created in 1943 by Brisbane Lord Mayor John Beals Chandler, the Queensland People's Party contested elections in South East Queensland. In 1948, they became the Queensland branch of the Liberal Party of...
. This party later absorbed the Queensland branch of the United Australia Party
United Australia Party
The United Australia Party was an Australian political party that was founded in 1931 and dissolved in 1945. It was the political successor to the Nationalist Party of Australia and predecessor to the Liberal Party of Australia...
, and became the Queensland branch of the Liberal Party of Australia
Liberal Party of Australia
The Liberal Party of Australia is an Australian political party.Founded a year after the 1943 federal election to replace the United Australia Party, the centre-right Liberal Party typically competes with the centre-left Australian Labor Party for political office...
in 1948.
Chandler retired from the Legislative Assembly in 1947. He remained Lord Mayor of Brisbane until 1952, the year he was knighted, and remained chairman and managing director of Chandlers until his death.
Chandler died at home in St Lucia
St Lucia, Queensland
St Lucia is an inner suburb of Brisbane, Australia located 4 km south-west of the Brisbane CBD. The suburb is bordered on three sides by the Brisbane River and is dominated by the main campus of the University of Queensland.-History:...
, Brisbane in 1962. The Brisbane suburb of Chandler
Chandler, Queensland
Chandler is an outer suburb of Brisbane, Australia south-east of the CBD.Chandler was named after Sir John Beals Chandler and is a semi-rural suburb and not yet heavily developed or subdivided.-External links:** *...
was named after him.