William Finlay (22 February 1840 – 18 June 1886) was a policeman and the first mayor of Albany in the Great Southern region of Western Australia.
The Finlays, both parents and three children, arrived in Western Australia aboard the convict ship Scindian in 1850.
[1] Finlay joined the police force in 1858; he served as a constable in Albany in 1864, moving to Williams in 1869, then to York in 1873 and then to Geraldton in 1874.
[3] Finlay resigned from the force in 1878 and was well remembered for his charitable work, administration skills and founding a local militia.
[4] He remained in Albany working as a clerk of customs and a tide waiter and also served as a municipal councillor.