Edward Neale Wigg
Edward Neale Wigg | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1847 Warwickshire, England |
| Died | 1927-12-12 |
| Occupation(s) | Entrepreneur, businessman |
| Known for | Head of ES Wigg & Son; Chairman and director of BHP and other mining companies |
Edward Neale Wigg (1847 – 12 December 1927), often referred to as E. Neale Wigg, was a distinguished Australian entrepreneur. He oversaw the prosperous book and stationery enterprise ES Wigg & Son, originally established by his father, and subsequently became a significant shareholder and board member in prominent Australian mining ventures, including BHP.
Early life
Born in Warwickshire, England, Edward was the son of Edgar Smith Wigg (1818–1899) from Suffolk. The family relocated to Australia in 1849, where Edgar founded a flourishing stationery and bookshop located at 12 Rundle Street, Adelaide.
Edward, along with his brothers Alfred and Henry, received their education at John Lorenzo Young's Adelaide Educational Institution.
Bookselling interests
In 1867, Edward became part of his father's firm, which was then renamed ES Wigg & Son. They purchased the competing shop owned by Charles Platts, establishing themselves as South Australia's leading bookseller. The business expanded its manufacturing operations, opened an additional outlet in Apollo Place, and broadened its product range to include art supplies and educational resources.
After Edgar retired in 1885, management passed to William Laidlaw Davidson—who had married Edgar’s daughter Mary Jane that same year—while E. Neale Wigg continued as head of the company. ES Wigg & Son grew further by opening branches in Broken Hill, Perth, Fremantle, and Kalgoorlie. A factory was constructed on Port Road, Thebarton in 1904.
E. Neale Wigg divested his interest to the Davidson family in 1910, who maintained the company’s original name. By 1921, ES Wigg & Son had moved to new facilities on Grenfell Street in Adelaide.
Mining interests
Wigg ventured into mining as a principal investor in the Wirrialpa mine in 1887 and assumed the chairmanship of the Hale River Ruby Mine in 1888. He held a directorship at BHP from 1890 until 1906 and served as chairman between 1897 and 1899. During his tenure as chairman, he appointed Guillaume Delprat as BHP’s General Manager for over twenty years. His board roles extended to the Lady Evelyn gold mine (Coolgardie), Ivanhoe mine (Kalgoorlie), Bon Accord Cape York Peninsula Syndicate, and Mount Lyell Mining & Railway Company.
Personal
On 6 September 1871, shortly after her arrival aboard the City of Adelaide, Wigg married Janet Davidson. Their son Frank Morewood Wigg was born in July 1872; he attended Prince Alfred College and graduated with MB and BCh degrees from the University of Edinburgh in 1900 but succumbed to pneumonia in Edinburgh a year later. Edward and Janet were traveling to England to visit him at that time and remained there after several visits without returning to Australia. Around 1910, Edward Neale Wigg legally changed his name to Edward Neale.
A devoted Anglican, he acted as synodsman for St Matthews Church in Kensington, South Australia from 1884 through 1887.
He left the bulk of his estate to the University of Adelaide with the intention of advancing medical research.