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Percival Evert Russell "Van" Vanthoff OBE (12 January 1894 – 30 July 1967) was a senior Australian public servant. He was Director-General of the Postmaster-General's Department from May until December 1958.

Life and career

Van Vanthoff was born in Cobram, Victoria on 12 January 1894 to parents Isaac and Mary Jane Vanthoff.

In World War I, Vanthoff served in the Australian Naval and Military Expeditionary Force.

He was appointed Director-General of Posts and Telegraphs, heading the Postmaster-General's Department, in May 1958. In the role, he oversaw development of an automatic teleprinter switching system for telegraphs, and worked to provide a six-tube coaxial cable between Sydney and Melbourne. Vanthoff retired in December 1958.

Vanthoff died on 30 July 1967 in Richmond, Melbourne.

Awards

In January 1955 Vanthoff was appointed an Officer of the Order of the British Empire.

References

1. ^ Blaazer, D.P. (2002). "Percival Evert Russell Vanthoff (1894–1967)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Vol. 16. Canberra: National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. ISBN 978-0-522-84459-7. ISSN 1833-7538. OCLC 70677943. Archived from the original on 25 November 2014.
2. CA 9: Postmaster-General's Department, Central Administration, National Archives of Australia, retrieved 25 November 2014
3. "Search Australian Honours: VANTHOFF, Percival Evert Russell", itsanhonour.gov.au, Australian Government, archived from the original on 25 November 2014

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