John Beals Chandler
| John Beals Chandler | |
|---|---|
 John Beals Chandler in 1940. | |
| Born |
February 21, 1887 Bunwell, Norfolk, England |
| Died |
February 21, 1962 (aged 75) St Lucia, Brisbane |
| Occupation |
Politician Businessman |
Sir John Beals Chandler (21 February 1887 – 19 January 1962) was the Lord Mayor of Brisbane from 1940 to 1952, and the Member for the Legislative Assembly of Queensland district of Hamilton from 1943 to 1947.
Personal life
John Beals Chandler was born in Bunwell, Norfolk, England, on 21 February 1887. From a poor family, he left school at the age of 8, and 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.
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.
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.
Politics
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 Legislative Assembly of Queensland 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.
References
External links
Media related to John Beals Chandler at Wikimedia Commons
| Preceded by Alfred Jones |
Lord Mayor of Brisbane 1940–1952 |
Succeeded by Frank Roberts |
|