Researching Harry White

He was a senior American official at the 1944 Bretton Woods conference that established the postwar economic order. He dominated the conference and imposed his vision of post-war financial institutions over the objections of John Maynard Keynes, the British representative. At Bretton Woods, White was a major architect of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank.

White was accused in 1948 of spying for the Soviet Union, which he adamantly denied. Although he was never a Communist party member, his status as a Soviet informant was confirmed by declassified FBI documents related to the interception and decoding of Soviet communications, known as the Venona Project.

White was renowned for his judgment in long-distance events and for sleeping in the jockeys' room before riding in a race, no matter how important it was. His record in sprint races include wins in three Newmarket Handicaps, three Oakleigh Plates and three Futurity Stakes.

White retired in 1995 and lives with his wife Lauris and three children, Karen, Dean and Brent, on a 200-hectare beef farm near Gisborne in Victoria.

As a teenager, White played drums, then switched to trombone after moving to Washington, D.C. around 1919. In the 1920s he played with Duke Ellington, Elmer Snowden, and Claude Hopkins, then started a family band called the White Brothers Orchestra in 1925. This ensemble played the mid-Atlantic states for several years.

Late in the 1920s, White played with Luis Russell, then joined the Mills Blue Rhythm Band in 1931. The following year he joined the orchestra of Cab Calloway, working as an arranger and composer in addition to duties on trombone. One of Calloway's trumpeters, Edwin Swayze, overheard White use the term "jitterbug", and wrote a tune called "The Jitterbug" because of it; Calloway's 1934 recording of it brought the term into widespread currency. He returned to play under Russell in 1935 while Russell's band backed Louis Armstrong. He quit playing for part of the 1930s, then later played with Manzie Johnson, Hot Lips Page, Edgar Hayes, and Bud Freeman.

He won five consecutive elections at the Middlesex East riding from the 1945 federal election through the 1958 election. After completing his fifth term, the 24th Canadian Parliament, White left federal politics and did not seek another term in office.

He died in 1987 and is interred in Westminster, Ontario.

He was educated at Trinity College, Dublin (whence he gained a Dublin Master of Arts (MA Dubl) and ordained in 1879. He was a curate at Ardbraccan and then went to New Zealand until 1885. He was Rector of Almoritia and Killesk and then Secretary of the SPG until 1905. He was Vicar of St Bartholomew's Dublin and later Archdeacon of Dublin. From 1918 to 1921 he was Dean of Christ Church Cathedral, Dublin when he was ordained to the episcopate as Bishop of Limerick, Ardfert and Aghadoe. He retired in 1933.

White was born in North Melbourne, and attended Ascot Vale State School. He served in the armed forces in World War I, initially with the Royal Australian Artillery at Queenscliff, and later in France with the siege battalion, where he transferred to the Royal Air Force and Australian Flying Corps. He subsequently worked as an engineer before entering politics.

White was elected to the Legislative Assembly at the 1932 state election, defeating incumbent Labor MP and future federal minister Reg Pollard. He was re-elected in 1935, 1937 and 1940, defeating future state MP Charlie Mutton on each occasion. White served as secretary to the parliamentary United Australia Party and as party whip both in government and in opposition from 1935 until 1940. He relinquished his parliamentary roles that year due to his service in World War II, in which he was attached to an armoured division. White ultimately attained the rank of major, but had a breakdown in health in 1943, and spent some months in a military hospital. He did not contest the 1943 state election, at which his seat was won by Reginald James of the rival conservative Country Party.

White died in October 1946, and was cremated at Fawkner Crematorium.