Philip Levi

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Philip Levi (1 February 1822 – 13 May 1898) was an early South Australian settler and pastoralist. He was born in Brixton Hill, England, and arrived in South Australia in 1838 at age 16 with his parents, Nathaniel Philip Levi and Sarah Goldsmid, and their other children.

Levi built a successful career in sheep and cattle farming in the north of the colony, often in partnership with Alfred Watts. He also had shipping interests, including a share in the Port Adelaide tug Goolwa with Jacob Smith.

In 1863 he helped found the Adelaide Club and served as a trustee; a portrait of him still hangs there.

In 1853 he bought Vale House near the River Torrens (now Vale Park), which became a social center for Adelaide for many decades. In 1870 his company sold several properties, including Moolooloo, Wirrealpa, Oulnina, Wadnaminga, Mount Margaret and Booleroo Station. These holdings were stocked with tens of thousands of sheep and cattle.

He died at Vale House and was buried in the Jewish section of West Terrace Cemetery. His estate passed to his family, and in 1947 his niece donated Vale House and surrounding land to the Town of Walkerville for a public park. The house is today part of the Levi Caravan Park, named after him.

Levi was the son of Nathan Philip Levi and Sarah Goldsmid, and he was married to Elizabeth Symes; they had several children.