James Richard Webber (28 August 1940 –4 November 2024) was an Australian politician.
Webber is perhaps best known for ending Rex Pilbeam's record 30-year reign as the mayor of the Queensland city of Rockhampton. [1]
He was also known for helping coordinate an unorthodox rescue mission in 1986 to prevent two male chimpanzees from being euthanised. [2]
Webber was born on 28 August 1940 in Leonora,Western Australia,and relocated to Queensland with his family as a young boy. [3]
At the age of 17,Webber moved north to Mackay where he worked at a Goodyear outlet retreading tyres. [3] Webber claimed he was sacked from the job after losing his temper at his boss for hitting him with a whip,which Webber alleged he did to all employees "jokingly". [3]
Despite already purchasing a block of land to build a house in Mackay,Webber relocated to Rockhampton with his fiancee in 1961 in what was meant to be a three-month stay. [3]
However,after Webber took up a position with Hardy Rubber,he married Stella Gray in 1962,after which they settled in Rockhampton and raised a family of four children. [3]
After working as a salesman at a local Chandler's store,Webber established his own local electrical goods retailer with his brother in 1968 called Rockhampton Electrical Centre,before the business became part of Retravision in 1970. [3] [4]
At the age of 29,Webber was elected as an alderman to Rockhampton City Council in 1970. [3]
After defeating long serving mayor Rex Pilbeam for the mayoralty in 1982,Webber served three consecutive terms as mayor until 1991 when he was succeeded by Lea Taylor. [3]
Webber remained on the council for an additional 11 years,serving as deputy mayor in Rockhampton City Council's final four years of existence before its amalgamation with three neighbouring local government areas in 2008 to become Rockhampton Regional Council. [3]
Until amalgamation,Webber remained heavily involved in council,frequently debating local issues and council decisions. [5] [6] [7] [8] [9]
Through his time at Rockhampton City Council,Webber is credited with overseeing the development of Kershaw Gardens,the Rockhampton Music Bowl and for being instrumental in having Rockhampton City Council acquire the Rockhampton Airport. [10] [11]
Webber also led Rockhampton through the 1991 floods caused by Cyclone Joy,which ultimately became the third highest recorded flood in the city's history. [12]
Along with Tom Wyatt,Webber is also credited with devising a plan to save two male chimpanzees called Cassius and Octavius from being euthanised at Tweed Heads in 1986,circumventing the Queensland and New South Wales state government's refusal to sign permits to allow the chimpanzees to cross the border. [2]
Webber and Wyatt drove down to retrieve the chimpanzees,persuading a truck driver to assist them in transporting the sedated chimpazees back to Rockhampton,so they could be housed at the Rockhampton Zoo. [2]
Webber and Wyatt reunited with Cassius at the Rockhampton Zoo a month before the chimp's 50th birthday in 2021. [2] Recounting the rescue mission,Webber stated:"At about nine o'clock at night,we got in the car and went down to the coast to save them... I was a fast driver and Tom was so scared." [2]
Webber had a cancerous lymph node surgically removed from his bowel in 1998 and received chemotherapy treatment for six months. [10]
In 2014,Webber was diagnosed with lymphoma on the brain and received chemotherapy treatment at Holy Spirit Northside Private Hospital in Brisbane. [10] [13]
Webber died on 4 November 2024,at the age of 84. [14]
After his death,Rockhampton mayor Tony Williams praised Webber as "someone who cared,led and delivered for Rockhampton in what was a critical time in the city's history". [14] [15] Former mayor Margaret Strelow and Member for Rockhampton Donna Kirkland also paid tribute to Webber. [14]
Webber's funeral was held at the Cathedral of Praise in the Rockhampton suburb of Kawana on 8 November 2024 prior to his burial in the North Rockhampton Cemetery. [14] [16]
In 2019,the Reception Room at Rockhampton's City Hall which had recently been restored was named the "Jim Webber Reception Room" in Webber's honour. An official opening was held at City Hall on 10 April 2019. [11]
Rockhampton is a city in the Rockhampton Region of Central Queensland,Australia. In the 2021 census,the population of Rockhampton was 79,293. A common nickname for Rockhampton is 'Rocky',and the demonym of Rockhampton is Rockhamptonite.
Rockhampton Airport is a major Australian regional airport in West Rockhampton,Queensland that services the city of Rockhampton,with direct flights to various major centres in Queensland,as well as Melbourne in Victoria. Flights have previously operated to the New South Wales capital,but were discontinued due to lack of interest in Sydney. The airport runway has the capability to handle aircraft such as the Airbus A380,Boeing 747 and Boeing 777.
The Shire of Mount Morgan was a local government area located in the Capricornia region of Central Queensland,Queensland,Australia,about 20 kilometres (12 mi) south of the regional city of Rockhampton. The shire,roughly the region surrounding the former gold mining town of Mount Morgan,covered an area of 492.0 square kilometres (190.0 sq mi),and existed as a local government entity from 1890 until 2008,when it amalgamated with several other councils to become the Rockhampton Region.
The City of Gladstone is a former local government area in central Queensland,Australia. It covered the urban locality of Gladstone and parts of the surrounding area.
The City of Rockhampton was a local government area in the Central Queensland region of Queensland,Australia,encompassing most of the suburban area of the regional city of Rockhampton. The city covered an area of 188.7 square kilometres (72.9 sq mi),and has existed as a local government entity in various forms from 1860 until 2008,when it amalgamated with several other councils in the surrounding area to become the Rockhampton Region.
Emmaus College is a co-educational Roman Catholic secondary day school,located in Park Avenue,a suburb of Rockhampton,Queensland,Australia.
The Fitzroy River Barrage is a mid-river dam system constructed on the Fitzroy River in Rockhampton,Queensland,Australia which separates the tidal river into saltwater and freshwater sections. It was designed to dam the river,enabling a permanent water supply to be stored for the city and its surrounding communities as well as providing an agricultural water supply for registered rural users.
4RO is an AM radio station broadcasting to Central Queensland from Rockhampton,Queensland on 990 kHz.
Reginald Byron Jarvis "Rex" Pilbeam was a member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly and long-serving mayor of Rockhampton.
The Pilbeam Theatre is an indoor performance venue in Rockhampton,Queensland,Australia.
Rockhampton Zoo is a zoo in the Australian city of Rockhampton,Queensland.
Kershaw Gardens is a 50 hectare area of parkland situated on an old landfill site in the Rockhampton suburb of Park Avenue,Queensland.
Henry Jeffries was an Australian politician. He served three terms as mayor of Rockhampton,Queensland from 1943 until 1952.
Members of Australia's royal family have made several visits to Rockhampton,Queensland,Australia.
Margaret Fay Strelow is an Australian politician who served as the mayor of the Rockhampton Region from April 2012 to November 2020.
The 2021 Rockhampton mayoral by-election was held on 23 January 2021 to elect a new mayor of the Rockhampton Region in Queensland,Australia.
The Rockhampton Heritage Village is a tourist attraction and multipurpose venue located in Rockhampton,Queensland,Australia.
The Rockhampton Museum of Art (RMOA) is an art museum located at 212-214 Quay Street,Rockhampton City,Queensland,Australia.
Thomas Joseph Lee was an Australian politician,best known for being the mayor of the City of Rockhampton between 14 April 1930 and 20 April 1936.
Thomas Alan Wyatt is an Australian horticulturalist best known for his 40-year association with the Australian Broadcasting Corporation in Queensland for which he hosted a weekly program called Gardening Talkback on the ABC Local Radio network.