Alfred Adderley

Alfred Francis Adderley (16 November 1891–16 June 1953) (often cited as A. F. Adderley) was a Bahamian lawyer, Member of Parliament and acting Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. His son was the Attorney-General, Paul Adderley.

Early life and education

Adderley was born in Nassau, Bahamas on 16 November 1891. He was the son of parliamentarian Wilfred P. Adderley and his wife Letitia (née McMinn). He was his parents' only child but he had older half-siblings from his mother's first marriage. Adderley attended Boys’ Central School and Nassau Grammar School. He then went abroad to Denstone College in Staffordshire, England from 1908-1911.

He obtained a bachelors of arts and a bachelors of law from St Catharine’s College, Cambridge in 1926.

Career

Adderley was called to the Bar at the Middle Temple on 14 May 1919. He returned to the Bahamas where he went on to become a renowned trial attorney, known for his work on cases such as the Forrester Scott-Stanley Boynton kidnapping case, an assault on Errol Flynn and the murder of Sir Harry Oakes.

He was elected to the House of Assembly in 1923. In 1938, he was appointed to the Legislative Council. In 1946, he became the first black person appointed to the Executive Council. He served as Acting Chief Justice of the Supreme Court in 1951, becoming in the process the country's first black chief justice.

He was the founder and first president of the Bahamas Amateur Athletic Association, the founder of the Bahamas Cricket Association and also Vice President of the Bahamas Olympic Association.

Honours

In 1951, he was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire in the King’s Birthday Honours.

Death and legacy

Adderley represented the Bahamas at the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. He died on 16 June 1953, on the voyage back to the Bahamas. He was 62.

Both the A. F. Adderley High School and the A.F. Adderley Auditorium in Nassau are named for him.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Alfred Francis Adderley CBE (16 Nov 1891–16 Jun 1953)". St Catharine's College, Cambridge. Retrieved 2026-01-03.
  2. 1 2 Bowe, Ruth (Jan 29, 2010). "Personalities: Alfred Francis Adderley". Bahamas Weekly. Retrieved 2026-01-03.
  3. 1 2 3 "Negro is Prosecutor in Oakes Murder Case in Bahama Islands". The Michigan Chronicle. 21 Aug 1943. p. 5. Retrieved 6 Jan 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Glinton-Meicholas, Patricia (2016). "Adderley, Alfred Francis (1891–1953), barrister and parliamentarian". In Knight, Franklin W.; Gates, Jr., Henry Louis (eds.). Dictionary of Caribbean and Afro–Latin American Biography (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199935802.
  5. ↑ "Young, Gifted and Black - Alfred Francis Adderley MHA 1924". Bahamianology. 2021-12-15. Retrieved 2026-01-03.
  6. ↑ "University Intelligence: Cambridge". Birmingham Post. Oct 18, 1926. p. 2. Retrieved 3 January 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  7. 1 2 "Negro Lawyer Named to Bahamas Council". The Montreal Gazette. 9 May 1938. p. 11 – via newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ "Freed from Charge of Kidnap Attempt". Evening Banner. Bennington, Vermont. Apr 28, 1938. p. 3. Retrieved 3 January 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  9. 1 2 3 "Noted Bahamas Official Dies". Atlanta Daily World. 19 June 1953. p. 1 – via newspapers.com.
  10. 1 2 3 4 5 "Official of Bahamas Dies: Alfred F. Adderley Represented Islands at London Coronation". New York Times. June 17, 1953. p. 38. Retrieved 3 January 2026.
  11. 1 2 "Famed Negro Barrister Holds Spotlight in Oakes' Trial". Journal and Guide. Norfolk, Virginia. 21 August 1943. p. 23. Retrieved 3 January 2025 – via newspapers.com.
  12. 1 2 "Negro Barrister in De Marigny Case". The Daily Worker. 28 October 1943. p. 3. Retrieved 3 January 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  13. 1 2 "Adderley, Famed Nassau Lawyer, in New Orleans". The Journal and Guide. Norfolk, Virginia. 17 June 1944. pp. 1, 2. Retrieved 3 January 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  14. ↑ "Appointment to the Legislative Council". The London Gazette. No. 34505. 26 April 1938. p. 2708.
  15. ↑ "Negro Chief Justice". South Wales Argus. Newport, Monmouthshire. 15 August 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 3 January 2026 – via newspapers.com.
  16. ↑ "Appointments to the Order of the British Empire". The London Gazette. No. 39243. 1 June 1951. p. 3083.
  17. 1 2 Annual Report for the Bahama Islands for the Years 1952 and 1953. London: Colonial Office. 1954. p. 4 – via HathiTrust.