Mr Harry Cliff
The Cliff Stand; a memorial to farm machinery manufacturing.
Harry Cliff was a pioneering businessman in the Melbourne District in the late 19th and early 20th century, volunteering much of his time to the newly established National Agricultural Society of Victoria.
Harry Cliff of Cliff and Bunting Agricultural Engineers was elected as a councillor on the NASV in 1899, a year that saw a record number of entries and 169 stands of machinery, implements and miscellaneous exhibits, which was considered to be 'the largest collection ever brought together on the grounds'.
Mr Cliff served two terms as Vice President after being elected to the position in 1905.
In 1912, a scheme introduced by the society permitted the erection of buildings by which exhibitors and others desiring Show accommodation could occupy as long as the design provided a roof that could accommodate arena spectators. This scheme saw the emergence of new grandstands, including the Cliff stand which was named after Mr Harry Cliff.
In addition to his time spent serving the NASV, Mr Cliff was a well-known businessman, having established an agricultural engineering business in 1887 alongside Mr Jonathan Craven Bunting. Historical pieces of Cliff and Bunting farm machinery can still be found in use around Australia today.
