Ralph Abercrombie (public servant)
{{Short description|Australian public servant (1881–1957)}}
{{Use Australian English|date=September 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix =
| name = Ralph Abercrombie
| honorific-suffix = {{post-nominals|country=AUS|OBE}}
| image =
| image_size =
| caption =
| office1 = Commonwealth Auditor-General
| term_start1 = 1 September 1938
| term_end1 = 1946
| birth_name =
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1881|07|19|df=y}}
| birth_place = Mount Duneed, Victoria
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1957|05|03|1881|07|19|df=y}}
| death_place = Hawthorn, Victoria
| occupation = Public servant
| years_active =
| nationality = Australian
| website =
| parents = Andrew Thomson and Mary Anna (née Kenshole) Abercrombie
| spouse =
| alma_mater =
| children =
}}
Ralph Abercrombie {{post-nominals|country=AUS|OBE}} (19 July 1881{{spaced endash}}3 May 1957) was an Australian public servant who was Commonwealth Auditor-General from 1938 to 1946.
Biography
Ralph Abercrombie CBE was born on 19 July 1881 at Mount Duneed, Victoria, Australia, the ninth child of Scottish born Andrew Thomson Abercrombie, the first headmaster of Mount Duneed State SchoolBarrabool, Land of the Magpie by Ian Wynd page 93 and his English wife Mary Anna (née Kenshole).{{cite Australian Dictionary of Biography |id2=abercrombie-ralph-9304|first=Robert|last=Hyslop|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150903111602/http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/abercrombie-ralph-9304|archivedate=3 September 2015|title=Abercrombie, Ralph (1881–1957)}}
He was the director of navy accounts and finance and civil member of the Naval Board. He joined the Navy Department in 1911 from the Victorian State Treasury. He was in charge of navy finance and accounting matters during World War 1. In 1923 the Government sent him to England on a special mission connected with the settlement of accounts associated with the repatriation of Australian troops. During that period he was attached to the Admiralty to obtain experience of Imperial accountancy organization.{{cite news|newspaper=The Examiner|location=Launceston, Tasmania|date=6 July 1938|title=Auditor-General: Mr. Ralph Abercrombie appointed|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article52214741|page=7}}
He was a member of the Commonwealth Institute of Accountants and a licensed auditor under the Victorian Companies Act. Under the Audit Act at the time he was employed, the salary of the Auditor-General was £1750 per annum.
He died on 3 May 1957 at his residence at Hawthorn, Melbourne, Australia.{{cite news|newspaper=The Canberra Times|date=11 May 1957|url=http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article91588203|title=Obituary: Mr. R. Abercrombie|page=2}}
Awards
Abercrombie was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire on 3 June 1935, in recognition of his service as Director of Navy Accounts.{{citation|url=https://honours.pmc.gov.au/honours/awards/1107474|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20150903112517/http://www.itsanhonour.gov.au/honours/honour_roll/search.cfm?aus_award_id=1107474&search_type=quick&showInd=true|archivedate=3 September 2015|title= Search Australian Honours, Name: ABERCROMBIE, Ralph, Award: The Order of the British Empire – Officer (Civil)|publisher=Australian Government|work=itsanhonour.gov.au}}
References
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{{s-gov}}
{{s-bef|before=Herbert Charles Brown}}
{{s-ttl|title=Commonwealth Auditor-General |years=1938–1946}}
{{s-aft|after=Albert Charles Joyce}}
{{s-end}}
{{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Abercrombie, Ralph}}
Category:Australian Officers of the Order of the British Empire
Category:20th-century Australian public servants