Harold Boas

Harold Boas (27 September 1883 in Adelaide – 17 September 1980 at Subiaco, Western Australia) was a town planner and architect in Western Australia. Boas designed many public buildings in and around Perth and was an influential jewish community leader. [ [http://www.adb.online.anu.edu.au/biogs/A130239b.htm Boas, Harold (1883 - 1980)] Australian Dictionary of Biography Online Edition]

Biography

Boas was born in Adelaide to noted Minister and Rabbi, Abraham Tobias Boas (1842-1923) and his wife Elizabeth, née Solomon. After being educated at Whinham and Prince Alfred Colleges he was apprenticed to architect Edward Davies between 1899 and 1904 and later studied at the South Australian School of Mines and Industries.

In June 1905 he moved to Perth where he initially joined architects M. F. Cavanagh & Austin Bastow and later Oldham, Boas, Ednie-Brown & Partners with whom he stayed for many years. Boas married Sadie ('Sarah') Cohen in North Perth on 29 March 1911.

With his partners, Boas designed many public and private buildings around Perth including the open-aired King's Picture Theatre (1905), the Nedlands Park Hotel (1907), Radio station 6WF (1924), Edith Dircksey Cowan Memorial (1934), the Emu Brewery (1938) [cite web|url=http://www.aussieheritage.com.au/listings/wa/Perth/EmuBreweryformer/20188|title=Emu Brewery (former), Spring St, Perth, WA|work=Aussie Hertitage|accessdate=2008-01-19] , the Adelphi Hotel, London Court (1937) and the Gledden Building (1838).

Boas served on the Perth City Council during 1914-16, 1926-42 and 1944, representing the South Ward. He was chairman of the State government's Metropolitan Town Planning Commission from 1928 to 1930 and was a member of the Town Planning Association of Western Australia from 1914. Boas chaired the City of Perth's town planning committee in 1930-33 and 1938-42, and was foundation president of the Town Planning Institute of Western Australia in 1931. He was an inaugural member of the State division of the Town Planning Institute of Australia.

In 1932 Boas stood unsuccessfully for the Western Australian Legislative Council as an anti-secessionist candidate during the debate prior to the 1933 secession referendum.

He founded and edited the "Australian Jewish Outlook", a short lived anti-Zionist monthly, in May 1947. However, the periodical went out of circulation after little more than a year as Boas had overestimated the level of support for it. [cite web|url=http://judaica.library.usyd.edu.au/bibliography/bibliography.html|title= The Australian Jewish Periodical Press|work=University of Sydney|year=2007|accessdate=2008-01-24]

He was president of the local branch of the United Nations Association, representing Australia and the Executive Council of Australian Jewry at the United Nations conference in Bangkok in 1950.

The Harold Boas Gardens in West Perth (formerly known as "Delhi Square" up to 1975-76) are named in his honour.coord|-31.946|115.845|display=inline|format=dms [cite web|url=http://register.heritage.wa.gov.au/PDF_Files/H%20Reg/Harold%20Boas%20Gdns%20(P).PDF|title=Harold Boas Gardens Permanent Entry | work=Heritage Council of Western Australia | accessdate = 2008-01-24|format=PDF]

References

Further reading

*cite book|author=Boas, Harold|title=Bricks and Mortar (An Autobiography)|publisher=Unpublished manuscript, Battye Library|year=1969