Cultural Advice

Aboriginal Peoples are advised the Library Collection contains images, voices and names of deceased people in physical and online resources.

The Library recognises the significance of the traditional cultural knowledges contained within its Collection. The Library acknowledge some materials contain language that may not reflect current attitudes, was published without consent or recognition, or, is offensive. These materials reflect the views of the authors and/or the period in which they were produced and do not represent the views of the Library.

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Sir Eric Neal Collection

The Sir Eric Neal Collection documents the distinguished contributions of Sir Eric Neal AC to engineering and Australian business. Neal trained as an engineer at the South Australian School of Mines, a predecessor institution of the University of South Australia. A successful engineering career led to serving as CEO of Boral for 14 years. He served as a board member of several companies including BHP, Atlas CopCo, Westpac and John Fairfax Ltd. He was Chief Commissioner of Sydney in 1987-1988, and in 1996 was the first businessman appointed to the office of Governor of South Australia, serving until 2001.

The Collection comprises reports, correspondence, programs, invitations, photographs and other records for Neal’s diverse activities in business and the community. The books on gas and engineering date from the 1860s and were either collected by Neal or inherited from his father.

Picture - Sir Eric Neal as Works Engineer at the Broken Hill Gas Co.

Access and explore the collection


The Collection is housed in the Sir Eric Neal Library at the University of South Australia Mawson Lakes Campus. Access is by appointment only.

Contact Ask the Library to make an appointment.

You can discover what is in the Collection through the Box List, or explore the Collection by browsing Collection Discovery or searching the Special Collections Catalogue.


From the Collection

Explore Sir Eric's life and achievements through photographs and items from the Collection in the interactive timeline below.

 

Biography


Sir Eric Neal worked as an engineer before becoming a board member of several companies including Boral, John Fairfax Ltd and BHP. Sir Eric was well regarded for his management skills and was recognised for his corporate leadership. He became Chief Commissioner of Sydney in the late 1980s and was the first businessman to be appointed to the office of Governor of South Australia in 1996.


Sir Eric has been recognised for his significant contribution to Australian business. He received a knighthood in 1982 and was made a Companion of the Order of Australia in 1988. In 1992 he was made a Commander of the Royal Victorian Order. He was named Australian Business Magazine's Businessman of the Year in 1987.

While serving as the Governor of South Australia, Sir Eric led trade missions to the Shandong province of China, Malaysia, Sweden and the United States of America.

Following his retirement as Governor in 2001, Sir Eric was Chancellor of Flinders University until 2010. He was chair of the South Australian Government Road Safety Advisory Council between 2003 and 2011 and chaired the South Australian Veterans' Advisory Council from 2009 until 2016.

Picture - Sir Eric Neal at the UniSA Library, UniSA Library

Discover more


Resources in other collections

Biographical information

Featuring Sir Eric Neal

  • Sir Eric Neal - The investigator Transformed (3 min 28 sec)
    Flinders University, 19 September 2016 - hear Sir Eric Neal talk in the video about his time as Chancellor at Flinders University and the importance of education

More about Sir Eric Neal