Bill McLarty was born to Sir Ross McLarty, WA Premier from 1947 to 1953, and Lady Violet McLarty in 1927.
First and foremost he was a farmer who loved farming and was the fourth generation of the McLarty farming dynasty.
Over the years he had been a member of many committees, including fundraising to build the Pinjarra Civic Centre and the council offices, and was vice-president of Pinjarra Race Club for several years.
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READ NOWHe was chief fire officer in Pinjarra, for which he was awarded a service medal, and a member of the Pinjarra Trotting Club and Pinjarra Golf Club, helping to raise funds to install grass greens.
One of his proudest achievements was playing a major role in acquiring the Murray Leisure Centre for Pinjarra.
In 1888, Bill McLarty’s grandfather Edward built Edenvale, which today is still one of Pinjarra’s landmark buildings.
Edward’s father John was one of WA’s earliest settlers, arriving from Scotland in 1839.
Bill McLarty lived at Edenvale until he married Evelyn Parkhill in 1952.
They moved into adjacent Liveringa |for the first 15 years |of his marriage and later built a home |on his farm Brookfield.
In 2003, he moved to Country Road and later to Perth for health reasons.
Bill and Evelyn McLarty celebrated 63 years of marriage last October.
His family paid tribute to “a man of the land” who could tell wonderful stories of the early days of Pinjarra and who always looked on the bright side.
He is survived by Evelyn, children Jenny, Ann and Stuart and eight grandchildren.
The family thanked those who attended the service at Edenvale on January 10 and said their presence meant a lot to them.