He was born at Windsor to landowner William McQuade and Amelia Anne Hale.
He became a landowner himself, and on 1 April 1878 he married Cecily King, with whom he had three children.
He was elected to the New South Wales Legislative Assembly for Windsor in an 1880 by-election, but was defeated at the general election later that year.
In 1882 he returned to the Assembly as the member for Hawkesbury, but he was defeated again in 1885.
[1] Their daughter Amelia McQuade married cellist Jean Gérardy at St James's, Manchester Square, London on 8 October 1907.