Researching Arthur Short

Arthur was born in Salisbury, South Australia to Edwin and Ann Short, née Kerwin.

Edwin was a son of Captain William Short H.E.I.C.S., and may also have served in the East India Company, but had been chief officer on the Emma trading between Adelaide and Sydney. He married in Sydney in October 1842 and moved to South Australia the following January. They lived first in South Richmond, as did Edwin's father William, and in 1846 settled at Yankalilla, then around 1848 moved to "Courtwick Farm", Salisbury, where Arthur and his brother Albert excelled in athletics. In 1869 Edwin Short selected near Maitland and the Cocoanut [sic] Station, Kulpara which the boys managed alone until 1873 when the rest of the family moved to "The Cocoanut".

Arthur was educated at a Grammar School. His father, always an aggressive man, around 1860 following a blow to the head, began displaying erratic behaviour. He believed he was being persecuted by the Rymill brothers, Sir Henry Ayers and his own lawyers Way & Symon. He became so violent that in 1876 his wife petitioned for him to be admitted to the Adelaide Lunatic Asylum. Edwin Short appealed against his confinement, and was able to produce witnesses as to his sanity, but evidence given by his family and neighbours was compelling. Arthur had taken over management of the properties, and in 1880 was licensed as an auctioneer.

When Maitland, Kilkerran, Moolywurtie, and Cunningham were formed into a district he was elected the first district clerk, later Maitland's first town clerk, and Mayor for a total of six years. He was elected to the South Australian House of Assembly seat of Yorke Peninsula and served from April 1893 to April 1896, succeeding Henry Lamshed as associate of Harry Bartlett. He stood again, but was beaten by William Copley.

He left for Western Australia, where he ran an auctioneering business in Murray Street, Perth from 1898, then Hay Street. He contested the Western Australian Legislative Assembly seats of West Perth in 1900 and East Perth seat in 1901, but was unsuccessful. He filed for bankruptcy in 1904 and returned to South Australia sometime after mid-1906.

In 1908 he applied for an auctioneer's licence in South Australia and again in 1916, then began auctioneering for Phillips & Co. of Franklin Street. He had a residence at 157 Fisher Street, Malvern, where he died.

Short was born in Maitland, Yorke Peninsula, the only son of Arthur Short, member for Yorke Peninsula in the South Australian House of Assembly from 1893 to 1896.

He was founder and managing director of Adelaide paper merchants Woolcott, Short & Co., which had premises off King William Street. In 1934 they moved to 13–19 Anster Street, off Waymouth Street, and shortly afterwards became A. E. W. Short Pty. Limited.He was a prominent Rotarian – twice President of Adelaide Rotary Club, District Governor for South Australia (District 65) 1935–1936, and Governor of Rotary International.

He was a longtime supporter and member of the management committee of the Somerton Crippled Children's Home, vice-president of The Crippled Children's Association of South Australia, and a member of the Kangaroo Club administration committee. (The Kangaroo Club (1931-c. 1955) was an initiative of radio station 5AD, and raised funds for children's charities.)

He was councillor for Gawler ward in the Adelaide City Council for nine years, serving on several committees then, as the endorsed LCL candidate, elected Lord Mayor on 2 July 1949 when he defeated C. W. Lloyd. He died of peritonitis at Wakefield Street Private Hospital after being suddenly taken ill at his Unley Park home.