Maurice Salom

Maurice Salom (1 July 1831 – 10 October 1903) was a businessman and politician in the colony of South Australia.

Salom was born in London to A. H. Salom, a member of an old family of Sephardic Jews, a merchant and at one time a planter in the West Indies. He received a good education and in 1846 he was articled to a London stockbroker, with whom he remained for three years, then spent some time as a merchant around the coast of Africa, dealing in commodities such as ivory, ostrich feathers and animal skins. He arrived in South Australia in 1852 and joined the auctioneering firm of Solomon and Co., whose principals were Isaac and Judah Solomon, which he later acquired, then in 1882 sold to a consortium of merchants.

He was elected to the Legislative Council in 1882. The election was under the old system, when the whole colony voted as one constituency. Six members were required, and out of 14 candidates Salom was returned second of the poll with 8,115 votes. He was asked by Sir John Downer to accept the Chief Secretaryship, but he declined. In September, 1887, he introduced a Bill known as the First Offenders Act, which had the aim of keeping a first offender out of jail and giving him a chance of retrieving his name and living honestly. Salom did not seek re-election.

His business responsibilities included:

He was actively involved in a number of public and charitable institutions:

He died after a short illness and was buried in the Jewish section of the West Terrace Cemetery.

Salom married Kate Solomon (19 June 1837 – 7 June 1928) on 27 August 1856. Kate was a daughter of Moss Solomon (c. 1796–1849), sister of Judah Moss Solomon MLA, MLC (1818–1880) and Elias Solomon (1839–1909), and a niece of Emanuel Solomon MLC (1800–1873). They lived at Brougham Place, North Adelaide. Their children included:

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