Sir Eric Neal Collection

The Sir Eric Neal Collection documents the distinguished contribution of Sir Eric Neal AC to Australian business, public life and engineering through a selection of correspondence, media clippings, photographs, programs, invitations, notes, books and objects.

Neal began his education for becoming an engineer in 1940 at fifteen years of age, commencing an apprenticeship with the South Australian Gas Company that also employed his father, James Neal. While he worked as an apprentice by day, Neal studied during nights at the South Australian School of Mines, itself an antecedent institution of Adelaide University.

Following his employment with the South Australian Gas Company, Neal worked briefly with the Electricity Trust of South Australia before progressing his career through employment opportunities at the Broken Hill and Suburban Gas Company, the Ballarat Gas Company, the Gas Supply Company (Boral Gas) in Brisbane, and Boral Limited in Sydney. Neal was consistently praised for his achievements in management, ultimately holding the position of Chief Executive Officer for Boral Limited from 1974 to 1987. In finishing as CEO, Neal had led Boral to fourteen consecutive years of annual profit growth and was voted by his corporate peers as "Australia's top CEO".

Following his position as CEO with Boral, Neal served as a Chief Commissioner of Sydney.

Neal served as a Director on numerous company boards, including Westpac Banking Corporation, Atlas Copco (Australia) Limited, Broken Hill Proprietary (BHP), Boral Limited, John Fairfax Limited, Wormald and Coca-Cola Amatil. Additionally, Neal served as Chairman for Westpac and Atlas Copco.

Following his career in engineering and business, Neal served a number of public positions. Most noteworthy, Neal became the first businessman to be appointed to the office of Governor of South Australia in 1996. In 2002, Neal became Chancellor of Flinders University, and held the position until 2010. Neal chaired the South Australian Government's Road Safety Advisory Council (RSAC) and the Veterans Advisory Council. In 2016, at 91 years of age, Sir Eric Neal retired from public life.

Sir Eric Neal's family and personal life is also reflected in this collection. Sir Eric's wife, Lady Joan Neal (nee Bowden), was an ever-present supporter in his public life and regularly attended official engagements. Sir Eric and Lady Neal's friends and family are also present in this collection.