James H O'Reilly
Mercantile Rowing Club (VIC)
The following obituary appeared in the Club's 1974-75 annual report.
Jim O'Reilly joined this Club in the early years of this century.
He won a number of races, but thought he was cut out for a life in the country and in 1912 he moved to Echuca, joining a well known firm of stock and station agents.
Most of his holidays were spent in Melbourne and he moved about with Club members and enjoyed a special place in the South West Corner.
In 1926 he commenced farming at Lake CarÂgellico in New South Wales, remaining there until the end, although during recent years, with a son managing the property, he spent a considerable amount of time in Melbourne and at the Club, and enjoyed a trip to the Olympic Games in Japan with the rowing supporters.
He was 87 years of age and for approximately 67 years a member of Mercantile. He supported our various activities and was keenly interested in our re-building projects to which he was a substantial donor. We regret the passing of an old and loyal member.
Extracted by Andrew Guerin
February 2023