Alexander Macleay

Alexander Macleay

Hon. Alexander Macleay MLC FLS FRS (24 June 1767 – 18 July 1848) was a leading member of the Linnean Society and a fellow of the Royal Society.

Macleay was born on Ross-shire, Scotland, eldest son of William Macleay, provost of Wick. Alexander had a classical education, went London and became a wine merchant. In 1795 he was elected a fellow of the Linnean Society and was also appointed chief clerk in the prisoners of war office. When the office was linked with the Transport Board after war broke out, Macleay became head of the correspondence department and by 1806 secretary. The Board was abolished in 1815 and Macleay retired on an annual pension of £750.

Macleay's chief natural history interest was entomology and he had the finest and most extensive collection then existing of any private individual in England. This included the British Collection of John Curtis now housed in Melbourne, Australia. James Francis Stephens referred to Alexander Macleay as "my friend" and talks about his philosophical views on insect structure and arrangement. This is a euphemistic reference to Macleay's curious quinary system , a classication schema based on the number 5.

On 14 June 1825, Macleay was appointed Colonial Secretary for New South Wales and brought his collection and family with him to Australia [http://www.usyd.edu.au/museums/about/macleay.shtml] arriving in January 1826. He was soon working twelve hour days and in July 1826 was made a member of the Executive and Legislative Councils.

His extensive entomological collections formed the basis of the Macleay Museum at the University of Sydney.

He was also very active beyond his scientific pursuits and was the foundation president of the Australian Club.

He was the father of the entomologist William Sharp Macleay who expanded his father's collection and of George Macleay, also a zoologist. His daughter Rosa Roberta married Arthur Pooley Onslow; her children included Arthur Alexander Walton Onslow and Sir Alexander Onslow.

References

*cite web
title=About the Macleay Museum
publisher=University of Sydney
url=http://www.usyd.edu.au/museums/about/macleay.shtml
date=2006-06-12
accessdate=2007-07-03
*' [http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A020156b.htm McLeay (Macleay), Alexander (1767 - 1848)] ', Australian Dictionary of Biography, Volume 2, MUP, 1967, pp 177-180.


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