Free Settler or Felon
Convict and Colonial History




Colonial Military Officers

Newcastle and Hunter Valley


The early history of our country is closely linked with the British Army, not only because of the regiments that were stationed here in the convict days, but also for the reason that, at the close of the Peninsular War, many officers who had secured their discharge from the army, came out to the new country to fill Government positions. Many of them secured large land grants and laid the foundation of the wealthy landowning families of later years - Newcastle Historian W. J. Goold

Below are notes about some of the Officers who served or settled in Newcastle and the Hunter Valley in the first half of the 19th Century. Click on the Links to find out more about each Officer


A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T V W Y

A

CAPTAIN FRANK ADAMS - 28th regt

Frank Adams, born in 1809 in Ansty, Warwickshire, England, son of Henry Cadwallader Adams and Emma Curtis. Arrived in 1836 on the Rattlesnake. Stationed in Maitland in 1838 and 1839. Died 19 September 1869. More about Frank Adams at Descendants of Maria Matilda Gordon


CAPTAIN FRANCIS ALLMAN - 48th regt

Born on 1 November 1780 in County Clare, Ireland, the second son of John and Harriett Allman. Arrived in Australian with the 48th regiment on the Minerva in 1818. Hunter Valley settler.


CAPTAIN PHILLIP NICOL ANLEY - 17th regt

Born 30th October 1795 in Maitland St. Clements Jersey to Peter Bonamy Anley and Mary Nicolle. Married Harriet Allez of Guernsey in July 1821. Arrived in Hobart on the convict ship 'John' on 28th January 1831. Magistrate at Maitland in 1831. Relative of Ferdinand Anley.


CAPTAIN JOHN ARMSTRONG - 99th regt

Appointed Ensign 29 October 1812; Lieut. 19 April 1814. Promoted to Captain in 1842. Magistrate and Assistant Engineer at Newcastle stockade 1842.


CAPTAIN PHILLIP AUBYN - 57th regt (West Middlesex)

Appointed Ensign 14 February 1811. Lieut. 29 April 1813, Captain 22 June 1826. Arrived in the colony on the Borodino in 1828. Appointed Major 12 April 1831 and Lt. Colonel 28 November 1854. Served in the Peninsula from Nov. 1811 to the end of the war, including the battles of Vittoria, the Pyrenees, 25th 28th 30th and 31st July; Nivelle, Nive, 9th 11th and 13th Dec 1813; besides many other minor actions and skirmishes. Severely wounded through the left side in action at Coucher 18 March 1814. Served subsequently in the American war. Died at Rockingham House. St. Helier, Jersey May 1863. Buried at Mont l'Abbaye Cemetery, St. Helier, Jersey, Channel Islands [2]

B

LIEUT-COL. GEORGE BARNEY - Royal Engineers

George Barney, soldier and engineer, was born on 19 May 1792 at Wolverhampton, England, the son of Joseph Barney, drawing master at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich, and Jane, nee Chandler. He arrived in Sydney in the British Sovereign with his wife and three children in December 1835 with a detachment of Royal Engineers


LIEUT-COL ROBERT BAUMGARTNER - 27th regt

Appointed Ensign 27 September 1833; Lieut 30 June 1837; Captain 23 April 1841 Major 23 September 1851; Lt. col 12 December 1854. Colonel 6 April 1860. Colonel Baumgartner served the Eastern campaign of 1854-55 with the 28th regt., including the battles Alma and Inkerman, siege of Sebastopol and affair on the 18th June in the Cemetery; (succeeded to the command of the regt); was wounded in the trenches 17th August 1855 (Medal and Clasps C.B., Sardinian and Turkish Medals ). Assistant Engineer and superintendent of the iron gang at Harper's Hill, near Maitland in 1839. Departed the colony with his regiment for Bombay on the Kelso in June 1842.


CAPTAIN ISAAC BLACKBURNE - 17th regt

Arrived on the Mermaid in 1830. Magistrate and Lieutenant in the Mounted Police at Maitland in 1830. Resigned from Mounted Police in 1833


LIEUT. THOMAS VALENTINE BLOMFIELD - 48th regt

Thomas Valentine Blomfield was born at Dagworth, Suffolk in 1793. He fought in the Peninsular Wars. He arrived in Sydney with the 48th Regiment on the Dick in 1817. Acting Engineer at Newcastle in 1822. He retired as a Lieutenant in 1823 and then settled at Dagworth estate on the Hunter River. In 1820 he married Christiana Jane Brooks daughter of Richard Brooks. He died in 1857.


CAPTAIN JOHN EDWARD NEWELL BULL - 99th regt

John Edward Newell Bull was born on 11 October 1806 at Athlone, Ireland, the second son of Lieutenant-Colonel Robert Bull, C.B., K.H. and his wife Harriet, nee Newell. He arrived in VDL with his wife and family in command of the guard of the convict ship Kinneer in October 1842 and arrived in Sydney by November. He was superintendent of road gangs on the Western Road before taking up a civil appointment in 1849 as Superintendent of the breakwater at Newcastle.


CAPTAIN CHARLES FIZACHARY BUTTON - 46th regt

Appointed Lieut 19 December 1822. Died at his residence at Hexham September 1854 age 60. Buried at Tarro cemetery. Wife Henrietta Thomasina died in 1889

C

LIEUT. PIETER LAURENZ CAMPBELL - 21st Fusiliers

Pieter Laurenz Campbell, son of Ronald and Charlotte Campbell. Arrived as a passenger on the Roslin Castle in 1833. Police Magistrate at Maitland. He married Barbara Isabella, daughter of Alexander McLeay, on 10 September 1834. He was presented with a flattering address and a piece of plate when he left Maitland in 1836 to take up duty as police magistrate at Parramatta; in 1837 he also became visiting magistrate at the Female Factory. He was a shareholder and director of the Bank of Australia, and an early member of the Australian Club, Sydney. Died in London 4th October 1848.


LIEUT. JAMES CHAMBRE - 96th regt. Mounted Police

James Chabre joined the army 1829. Appointed to 96th regiment 28 December 1838. Arrived on the Barossa in 1839. He took part in the pursuit of the Jewboy gang in 1839. He was Adjutant and Quarter Master of the Mounted Police in 1840. Married Eliza Foster in 1841. Returned from Norfolk Island on the Governor Philip in July 1842. Departed for Bombay on the Candahar in October 1842.


LIEUT. SAMUEL TOLFREY CHRISTIE - 80th regt. Mounted Police

Samuel Tolfrey Christie, son of Dr. Thomas and Mary Isabella Christie (nee Tolfrey). Brother of William Harvie Christie who arrived on the Captain Cook in 1836. Samuel Tolfrey Christie was appointed Ensign 22 January 1836 and Lieutenant 13 July 1838. He arrived on the Bengal Merchant in 1836.


LIEUT. GILBERT CHAMPAIN - 5th Fusiliers

Gilbert Champain, born 1802 in Marylebone, London, son of John and Margery Champain. Appointed Lieutenant 27 April 1827. Married Harriett Pennington in 1835. Twin brother of Mackenzie Champain. Died at East Maitland in 1880 age 78. Buried Campbell Hill burial ground. More about the Champain family at Past Lives.


LIEUT. EDWARD C. CLOSE - 48th regt

Edward Charles Close was born on 12 March 1790 at Ramgamati in Bengal son of Edward and Marianne Collinson Close. He served in the 48th regiment and arrived in Australia on the Matilda in 1817. He was employed as engineer of public works at Newcastle and later resided on his grant at Morpeth.


ENSIGN GEORGE GEDDES MACKENZIE COBBAN - 50th regt. Mounted Police

George Cobban was appointed to the Mounted Police in January 1836. He was appointed Lieutenant in 1838. Served in the Mounted Police with Major James Winniett Nunn. Took part in reprisal against an aboriginal tribe that became known as the 'Waterloo Creek Massacre' or Slaughterhouse Creek Massacre'; Appointed Captain in 1843. Killed at Punniar in 1844


LIEUT. WILLIAM SACHERVERELL COKE - 39th regt

William Sacherverell Coke was born in August 1805. Married Sarah Gift/Deane. Appointed Ensign January 1824. Appointed Lieutenant in July 1825. Arrived in command of the Guard on the convict ship Regalia in 1826. Died in March 1896 in Derbyshire.


ENSIGN CHARLES CRESSY - NSW Corps

In command at the penal settlement at Newcastle temporarily in the absence of Lieut. Menzies in 1804.


MAJOR WILLIAM CROKER - 17th regt

William Croker was appointed Ensign 27 March 1803; Lieut 2 June 1804; Captain 20 November 1806; Brevet Major 12 August 1819; Regtl Major 16 June 1825; Lt. Col. 1 April 1836. Served in the East Indies from 1804 to 1824 including the siege of Gurnowri 1807; Arrived in VDL on the Red Rover in 1831.


CAPTAIN JAMES HENRY CRUMMER - 28th regt

James Henry Crummer was born on 31 October 1792 at Athlone, Ireland, the son of Samuel Crummer, of Birr. He married Katrina Plessos in February 1827. He was Magistrate at Newcastle in the years 1837 - 1849 followed by nine years at Maitland where he was Magistrate and Superintendent of the Immigrant depot until 1858. James Henry Crummer died at Port Macquarie in 1867

D

LIEUT. GEORGE E. DARBY - 59th regt

George Elde Darby attended Sandhurst Military College. He arrived in the colony with wife and family on the Abberton in August 1839 and was employed as a surveyor for the A.A. Company and as a schoolmaster at Newcastle.


CAPTAIN HENRY JAMES DAY - 99th regt

Henry James Day was appointed Ensign 10 February 1825; appointed Lieut. 11 June 1829. He arrived in VDL in command of the Guard on the convict ship Candahar in August 1842. Appointed magistrate and assistant engineer and superintendent of ironed gangs in room of Lieut. Scheberras November 1842


CAPTAIN JOHN WILLIAM DONELAN - 57th regt

John William Donelan was appointed Ensign April 1817. Arrived in the colony in command of the Guard on the convict ship Lonarch in 1825. He was stationed at Norfolk Island in 1826. He was recalled from duties at Port Stephens in February 1831and replaced there by Captain Moffatt. He embarked on the Resource bound for India in March 1831. He was appointed Captain in 1831. Captain Donelan was shot dead on the Parade Ground in Fort St. George Madras in 1834


CAPTAIN CADWALLADER DRAFFEN - NSW Corps

Cadwallader Draffen was the fourth son of Rev. Frederick Draffen. He arrived on the Coromandel in 1804. He was Commandant at Newcastle briefly in 1805. He was appointed Lieutenant in 1806. Placed on half pay in 1815.


COLONEL HENRY DUMARESQ

Henry Dumaresq, son of Colonel John Dumaresq of Bushel Hall, Shropshire, England, and his wife Anne, nee Jones. He attended the Royal Military College, Great Marlow, and served during the Peninsular war and in Canada. Served with the 9th Regiment (lieutenant-colonel, 1818) and was severely wounded at Waterloo.


CAPTAIN WILLIAM DUMARESQ

William John Dumaresq son of Colonel John Dumaresq of Bushel Hall, Shropshire, England, and his wife Anne, nee Jones. Attended Royal Military College, Great Marlow, and served during the Peninsular war and in Canada, where he was a captain in the Royal Staff Corps, and was engaged in the construction of the Ottawa canal.


E

LIEUT. THOMAS EVERNDEN - 3rd Regt., (Buffs)

Thomas Everndan arrived in the colony as a member of the Guard on the convict ship Surry in 1823. In 1825 he was Commander of the horse patrol then newly established in Sydney when he embarked on the vessel Amity for Newcastle with 30 soldiers to quell bushranging in the district. The uniform of the horse patrol was the same as the Governor's Body Guard

F

CAPTAIN ALURED TASKER FAUNCE - 4th regt

Alured Tasker Faunce, eldest son of Major-General Alured Dodsworth Faunce of Clifton, near Bristol, England, and his wife Anna Maria, nee Goddard. At 16 Faunce entered the army as an ensign in the 4th Regiment, in which his father and grandfather had served. Accompanied by his brother, Lieutenant Thomas Faunce, he arrived in Sydney with the headquarters of the regiment in the Clyde in August 1832. He retired from the army on 1 October 1836 to become the police magistrate at Brisbane Water. He died 1856.


LIEUT. SIMON FRASER - 80th regt

Simon Fraser, born in Scotland in 1791 and entered the army on 7 March 1810, enlisting with the 80th regiment. Appointed Ensign 7 March 1810; Lieutenant 17 July 1811. Accompanied by his wife and 10 children, Lieut. Fraser arrived in VDL in August 1839 on the convict ship Marquis of Hastings. He was appointed Magistrate in 1840; Select here to read about an outbreak of convicts while Lieut. Fraser was superintendent of the No. 3 stockade at Newcastle in 1842


CAPTAIN RICHARD TASKER FURLONG - 80th regt

Richard Tasker Furlong was appointed Ensign in 20th regiment in 1823. Appointed Captain in the 80th regiment 22 April 1836. Arrived in the colony with wife and four children in command of the Guard on the convict ship Heber in 1837. He was Engineer and Superintendent at No. 3 Stockade, Newcastle in 1839. Frank The Poet wrote his well known poem A Petition From the Chain Gang at Newcastle to Captain Furlong while in Newcastle. He was appointed Police Magistrate at Mudgee in 1841. He was stationed in Newcastle in 1847. Captain Furlong died at Louisa Creek, Mudgee 30 March 1852

G

LIEUT. ISAAC HINDLEY HERBERT GALL - 99th regt

Isaac Hindley Herbert Gall was born in 1817, son of Lieut-Col George Herber Gall and Ann Wilkinson. He arrived on the Eden in 1842 and in Sydney from Hobart in July 1842. He was Commander of the Mounted Police at Jerry's Plains in 1847. Married Emma King at Morpeth in 1847. He was appointed Captain 29 August 1849. He was at various times stationed at Berrima, Norfolk Island, Parramatta, Hobart and Launceston. Lieut Gall died en route to Sydney in 1854


LIEUT. THOMAS GIBSON - 4th regt

Thomas Gibson joined the 4th regiment 14 February 1832. He arrived in the colony in command of the Guard on the convict ship Hercules in October 1832. He was in Command of a detachment of the 4th Regiment when Governor Bourke visited Newcastle in 1833.


CAPTAIN HENRY GILLMAN - 3rd regt

Henry Gillman married Mary Elizabeth, daughter of John Winter in 1815 in Patney, England. He arrived in VDL in command of the Guard on the convict ship Arab in 1822. He was appointed Commandant at Newcastle in 1823. Read about his hurried return to the settlement when Governor Brisbane made an impromptu visit in 1824. He was appointed Commandant at Port Macquarie in 1824. He resigned due to ill health in 1826 and departed the colony on the ship Australia in June 1827. Captain Gillman was appointed Lieut-Col in the 69th regt in October 1830.


H

CAPTAIN RICHARD HEAVISIDE - 57th regt

Richard Heaviside arrived in command of the Guard on the convict ship Asia in February 1825. He was on duty at Newcastle in October 1825. He departed the colony in May 1826


CAPTAIN EMANUEL HUNGERFORD - 32nd regt., Cork Militia

Emanuel Hungerford was born 1 February 1785 in County Cork, Ireland. Lieutenant in the 32nd Foot Regt and Captain of the South Cork Militia, retired due to ill health and with his family immigrated in 1828 aboard the Alexander Henry. He purchased 1920 acres at Wallis Plains and in 1833 was granted approximately 2500 acres on Baerami Creek. Married to Catherine Loane. Four more children born after arrival in Australia. Captain Hungerford died on 8 August 1872 at Maitland.

I

MAJOR ARCHIBALD CLUNIES INNES

Archibald Clunies Innes was born at Thrumster, Scotland in 1800, the son of Major James Innes, a distinguished soldier. Commissioned an ensign in the 3rd Regiment on 23 September 1813 and served in the Peninsular war. Major Innes arrived in Sydney as captain of the guard in the convict ship Eliza in 1822. From January 1824 to May 1825 he served in VDL. In December 1825 he was appointed aide-de-camp to the lieutenant-governor of New South Wales and became a magistrate in November 1826. He was appointed commandant of the penal settlement at Port Macquarie in December 1826 in succession to Captain Henry Gillman. He returned to Sydney and in 1828, resigned his commission and was appointed superintendent of police and magistrate at Parramatta. He was appointed assistant gold commissioner and magistrate at Nundle and later police magistrate at Newcastle, where he died on 29 August 1857.

J

MAJOR EDWARD JOHNSTONE - 50th regt

Edward Johnstone was born at Annandale, Scotland, in 1797. He was appointed Ensign in the 48th Regiment in 1810. In 1812 he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant in the same corps. During the whole of the Peninsular war he remained attached to the gallant 48th. He was one of the fortunate few of those who survived the bloody field of Albuera. Major Johnstone fought at the following general engagements :-Albuera, Salamanca, Vittoria, Pyrenees, Nivelle, Orthes, and Toulouse ; and was also present at the sieges of Cuidad Rodrigo and Badajos. He was severely wounded at the battles of Salamanca and the Pyrenees. In 1818 he joined the 58th Regiment, but was transferred into the 50th, then stationed in Jamaica, where he served for seven years. About 1825 he received the rank of Major, and came to the Colony with the 50th. (Sydney Herald) He arrived in Sydney on the James Laing in 1834 and in 1836 was appointed as a Police Magistrate at Paterson. He named his residence Annandale.


K

LIEUT. WILLIAM KENWORTHY - 48th regt

William Kenworthy was born in Lancashire. He was a brother of James Riley Kenworthy. William Kenworthy was appointed Ensign in 2nd Royal Lancashire Militia in 1812; appointed to the 48th regt in 1813; and appointed Lieutenant in 48th regt in 1818. He performed Christenings and Burials at Newcastle for military and convicts between 26th December 1818 and 24 June 1820. He was appointed Naval Officer and Inspector of Public Works at Port Dalrymple in December 1820. St. John's Church Launceston was built under his superintendence. He returned to England on the Arab in 1841.


L

MAJOR EDWARD LAST - 99th regt

Edward Last was appointed ensign 13th October 1814; appointed Lieutenant on 20 November 1824; appointed Captain on 22 May 1829; appointed Major on 18 October 1839. He was appointed assistant engineer at Newcastle Stockade in July 1844. He was given a farewell in Newcastle in 1846 on his departure for New Zealand to participate in the Maori wars. He died in 1870 - The Death is announced of Major-General Edward Last, a New Zealand veteran, and formerly Lieut-Col of the 21st Foot (North British Fusiliers). During the outbreak in New Zealand in 1846, Major Last commanded the Southern district and was present at the engagement at Bulcott's Farm, valley of the Hutt, in May 1846; he commanded at the capture of the rebel leader, To Rauparaha, and other influential chiefs, and the disarming of their followers in July of the same year, and also at the affair of the Horokiwi, on August 6, when the rebels were routed and ultimately dispersed. General Last was appointed to the 21st Foot in 1857 but retired soon afterwards on full pay. Edward Last owned an allotment in Church Street Newcastle with a substantial house opposite the parsonage on the rise of the hill.


LIEUT. WILLIAM LAWSON - NSW Corps

William Lawson was born on 2 June 1774 at Finchley, Middlesex, England, the son of Scottish parents who had lived at Kirkpatrick. Educated in London, he was trained as a surveyor, but in June 1799 he bought a commission in the New South Wales Corps for 300 pounds. As an ensign he arrived at Sydney in November 1800 in the Royal Admiral and was soon posted to the garrison at Norfolk Island, where he married Sarah Leadbeater. He returned to Sydney in 1806, was promoted lieutenant and served for a time as Commandant at Newcastle, a position he again occupied in 1809. In 1813 he joined Blaxland and Wentworth in the first successful crossing of the Blue Mountains. William Lawson died in 1850.


MAJOR SAMUEL LETTSOM - 80th regt

Samuel Lettsom was born in 1807, son of Samuel Fothergill Lettsom. He was appointed Ensign 6 March 1827; Lieut. 2 April 1829; and Captain 4 October 1833. He arrived in the colony in Command of the Guard on the convict ship Theresa in February 1839. In 1839 he was appointed Assistance Engineer and Superintendent of iron gang at Maitland. He was appointed Major in January 1840 and served in the Mounted Police at Melbourne in 1840. Died aged 43 in 1851


LIEUT. NATHANIEL LOWE - 40th regt Mounted Police

Nathaniel Lowe arrived in the colony in command of the Guard on the convict ship Albion in 1823. He arrived with a detachment of the Mounted Police at Wallis Plains in February 1826. In 1827 after a controversial court case, he was found not guilty of the murder of aborigine Jackey Jackey. He married Elizabeth Abbott at Launceston in 1828. Nathaniel Lowe died in Canada in 1875.


LIEUT-COL. HENRY WILLIAMSON LUGARD - Royal Engineers

Henry Williamson Lugard was born in Chelsea in 1813, son of Captain John Lugard and Jane Llewellyn. His brother was Edward Lugard. Henry Lugard entered the Royal Engineers in May 1832 and was appointed First Lieut 6 December 1835. He arrived in NSW as a passenger on the convict ship Hive in 1835. He moved to Newcastle in October 1836 to supervise the new Military Barracks being built by Hudson and Richardson. In March 1838 he left Newcastle for Norfolk Island to superintend public works on the Island. He carried out aMilitary survey of NZ in 1840. Henry Lugard married Mary Anna, daughter of John McHenry at Parramatta in 1842. They departed for London on the Kelso in 1844. He was appointed Captain 20 December 1844. Henry Lugard died in 1857. His Memorial reads 'In memory of Lt. Colonel Henry W. Lugard R.E., Commanding Royal Engineers in the China Expedition. Died at Hong Kong 1 December 1857 aged 44 years. This stone is erected by his brother officers, serving with him at the time of his death'


M

MAJOR EWEN MACPHERSON - 99th regt

Ewen Macpherson was born 1794 at Inverness. He married Catherine Gunn at Ceylon in 1827. Formerly 78th regt., he exchanged to the 99th regt in 1841. With his wife and family he arrived in Sydney from Hobart in August 1842. He was appointed Captain in 1843. He served as Superintendent of iron gangs at Illawarra in 1842-1844; and Superintendent of Agricultural at Norfolk Island 1844-45, departing there with his family in February 1845. He departed Australia with his regiment in May 1845 for New Zealand where he was wounded in the Maori wars. Back in Australia, he accompanied the governor on horseback to inspect the stockade, gaol and Nobbys Island in 1847. He laid the foundation stone of the Scots Church in Newcastle 1847. Major Macpherson departed Newcastle in 1855. He died in New Zealand in 1859.


CAPTAIN ROBERT GERALD MOFFATT - 17th regt.

Robert Gerald Moffatt was born 1800 at Ballymahon, Co. Longford, Ireland. He married Helen Church at Lisburn Cathedral, Ireland in 1828. He arrived in Australia in Command of the Guard on the convict ship Nithsdale in 1830. He replaced Lieutenant Donelan in command of the Military attachment stationed at Port Stephens in 1832. He served as Magistrate at Parramatta 1834 until 1843. Captain Moffatt died at Canning Creek, Darling Downs (120 miles from Ipswich) in March 1848 aged 47.


MAJOR JAMES THOMAS MORISSET - 48th regt

James Thomas Morisset entered the army as an ensign in the 80th Regiment in February 1798. He became a lieutenant in November 1800, saw service in Egypt and India, and in December 1805 purchased a captaincy in the 48th Regiment. He fought in the Peninsular war and was wounded at Albuera. In 1817 he accompanied his regiment to New South Wales, and was promoted Major in August 1819. In 1818 he was appointed to relieve Captain James Wallis as commandant at Newcastle


N

MAJOR JAMES WINNIETT NUNN - 80th regt; Mounted Police

James Winniett Nunn was appointed Ensign 7 April 1804; Lieut. 6 May 1805; he served in the Egyptian campaign of 1807; was appointed Captain 13 December 1810; and was present at the capture of Genoa in 1814; He was appointed Brevet Major 22 July 1830. Major Nunn arrived in command of the Guard on the convict ship Mangles in July 1837. Late in 1837 Acting Governor Colonel Kenneth Snodgrass ordered Major Nunn to lead a detachment against the Kamilaroi tribe. In late Jan 1838 Major Nunn, leading an Ensign, three sergeants and nineteen troopers down the Gwydir River, came across a native tribe at what became known as Snodgrass Lagoon on Waterloo Creek. After a Corporal attempted to arrest an aboriginal native, in response to which he was speared in the calf, a series of atrocities occurred which became known as 'The Waterloo Creek Massacre' or 'Slaughterhouse Creek Massacre'. James Nunn was appointed Lieut-Col in 1844. His last services were with his regiment, the 80th Foot, during the Sutlej campaign. The 80th Regiment marched from Lahore in December 1846 and arrived in the British Military base Meerut in January of 1847. James Nunn died in February 1847 at Meerut.

O

LIEUT. THOMAS OWEN - 3rd regt., (Buffs)

Lieut. Thomas Owen arrived as part of the Guard on the convict ship Henry in 1823. He was Engineer of Public Works and Naval Officer at Newcastle in 1824 when Governor Brisbane paid a visit to the township. He was sent to join his regiment at Port Macquarie in August 1825 and replaced Major Innes in Command at Port Macquarie in 1827

P

CAPTAIN JOHN PIKE - 73rd reg

Lieutenant John Pike first came to New South Wales with Colonel Lachlan Macquarie and the 73rd regiment in 1809 on the convict transport Boyd which departed Cork 10 March 1809 .


LIEUT. JOHN PURCELL - 73rd regt

Lieutenant John Purcell was born in 1779. He married Harriet Newman. He served at Gibraltar with the 6th regt and then transferred to the 73rd regt. He arrived in the Ann in 1810 and was appointed Commandant at Newcastle. Select here to read about some of his duties at Newcastle in 1810-11. When he retired from the Army he was appointed Chief constable at Penrith.

R

CAPTAIN JAMES ST. JOHN RANCLAUD

Captain James St. John Ranclaud was an officer of the Old Pompadours (56th) and after considerable service in India, retired from the Army and came to NSW arriving with his wife and five children on the Pyramus in 1829. He he secured land in the locality of Teralba, the homestead was originally called Trialba.


MAJOR JAMES REID - 56th regt

James Reid was born in Newry, Ireland in 1799, son of Jane Moore and Samuel Reid. With his wife Rosanna he arrived on the Skelton in 1822. He applied for a land grant on arrival stating that he was a Lieutenant on half pay. He was granted 2000 acres by Governor Brisbane on 5th May 1823 which he named Rosebook. He was also granted allotments of land in the township of Newcastle where he resided for many years.


LIEUT ARCHIBALD ROBERTSON - Mounted Police

Archibald Robertson commanded a detachment of Mounted Police at Wallis Plains in 1828 - 1829.


MAJOR WILLIAM RUSSELL - 20th regt

William Russell engaged with the 20th regt. in Holland in 1799; he was in Egypt in 1801; he served in the Peninsular War in Maida, Vimiera, Corunna, Pyrenees, Nive, Nevelle, Orthes and Toulouse and was awarded to gold medals and the Peninsular medal. Major Russell commanded the 20th foot February to April 1814. He arrived in the colony with his wife and children on the Alfred 31st December 1837. He died on 20th April 1853 aged 80 after a long illness and was buried at Christchurch burial ground Newcastle..... Down by the western dividing boundary there is a vault surrounded by an iron railing and covered by a heavy stone upon which is written - Major William Russell, H.M. 20th Regt., died April 20 1853. Aged 80. Also, Mary, wife of the above who died Jan. 10, 1859, aged 59

S

CAPTAIN RINALDO SCHEBERRAS - 80th regt

Rinaldo Scheberras was appointed Ensign 16 March 1826; Lieutenant 16 April 1833. He arrived in Command of the Guard on the convict ship Calcutta in 1837. He was appointed Assistant Engineer and Superintendent of the Stockade at Maitland in 1840 and was in command of the Stockade at Harper's Hill in 1842. He married Jane, the daughter of Lieut. John Laurio Platt in 1842. He left the Hunter district in November 1842. In 1844 he embarked with the 80th regiment on the Royal Saxon with wife and also Miss Platt. Rinaldo Scheberras died at the battle of Sutlej in 1846.


LIEUT PERCY SIMPSON

Percy Simpson, surveyor, engineer and administrator, was born in Canada in 1789, son of Major Noah Simpson of the 31st Regiment of Foot. He was commissioned in the 1st Garrison Battalion in 1809 and in 1812 became a lieutenant in the Royal Corsican Rangers as well as judge-advocate then governor of the Ionian Island of Paxos. In 1819 at Ballymascanlan, County Louth, Ireland, he married Hester Elizabeth McNeill. The family came to New South Wales in the Mangles in November 1822 with sufficient capital for a grant, cattle, convict servants and six months' rations. In June 1828 Simpson was appointed an assistant surveyor of roads and bridges and a magistrate, responsible for the construction of the Great North Road through difficult terrain from Wisemans Ferry...... He was granted land near Eraring in 1825.


LIEUT. THOMAS SKOTTOWE - 73rd regt

Thomas Britiffe Skottowe was born c. 1787 in France, the son of Lydia Pococke and Thomas Britiffe Skottowe. He was appointed Commandant at Newcastle Penal Settlement in 1811. While in Newcastle, in the years 1811 - 1814, Thomas Skottowe organised the collection and drawing of specimens for a manuscript. He was also was responsible for their arrangement and wrote the accompanying text. He departed the colony on H.M. Kangaroo with the 73rd regiment bound for Ceylon in 1815. Before departing he was publicly congratulated by Governor Macquarie for his activity, vigilance, integrity and zealous attention to his duties while Commandant and Magistrate at Newcastle. He died in 1820 in Northumberland, England


LIEUT. EDWARD WHITMORE SCOVELL - 96th regt; Mounted Police

Lieut. Scovell arrived in VDL from London with the 96th regt., on the Canton in January 1840. He was employed as a Magistrate at Muswellbrook Police Office in 1841 and appointed Captain in 1843. He was Commandant of the Mounted Police at Jerry's Plains in 1844. He was on leave from his regiment in England in 1845.


CAPTAIN CHARLES FERDINAND HAMILTON SMITH - 28th regt

The only son of Lieutenant-Colonel Charles Hamilton Smith of Plymouth, an obsessive English natural history illustrator who copied drawings from artists all over the world and for whom C. F. H. Smith collected and described and painted natural history items while in Australia. C. F. H. Smith arrived in command of the Guard on the convict ship Westmoreland in 1835 and was appointed Captain in 1838. He married Elizabeth, the daughter of William Harper of Oswald, Hunter River in 1839 and died on 19th July 1862 at Oswald, aged 53 years.


LIEUT-COL KENNETH SNODGRASS - 52nd regt

Kenneth Snodgrass was born in 1784 in Paisley, Scotland, the son of a Presbyterian minister. He became ensign in the 90th Regiment in 1802 and lieutenant in the 52nd in August 1804. In 1806 he accompanied the regiment to Sicily and two years later to Sweden. He was promoted Captain on 20 October 1808 and from 1809 to 1814 fought in the Peninsular war, entering the Portuguese army in which he was appointed a major in November 1812. He commanded a corps of 400 grenadiers at the battle of Vittoria. At the siege of San Sebastian he distinguished himself. He was injured several times and received decorations for his part in five major actions and was appointed C.B. in 1815. On 21 June 1817 he was promoted lieutenant-colonel; he remained in the Portuguese army until 1822. He arrived in the colony with his wife and family in 1828 on the George Canning. Two of his brothers-in-law had also arrived in the colony as settlers - W. McLean and Benjamin Sullivan.


LIEUT. CHARLES STEELE - 17th regt; Mounted Police

Charles Steele was born in Dundee, Scotland in 1807. He enlisted in the army in 1809. Lieut Steele arrived in VDL as a member of the Guard on the David Lyon in September 1830 and was appointed to the Mounted Police at Bathurst in 1832 and at Maitland in January 1833 on Lieut. Blackburn's resignation. He was succeeded by Lieut. Waddy in 1835. He was granted title deeds to 980 acres of land in Co. of Gloucester NSW. Charles Steele died at Port Macquarie in 1886.


LIEUT. ROBERT STIRLING - Buffs

Robert Stirling, brother of Governor James Stirling. He arrived in Australia on the Shipley in 1822. Robert Stirling accompanied John Oxley on his expedition to Moreton Bay in 1823. In March 1824 he was appointed to act as Assistant Engineer in room Lieut. Croker. He was killed by pirates who boarded the Admiral Benboe off Cape de Verde Islands 1829.


MAJOR BENJAMIN SULLIVAN

Major Benjain Sullivan, was a brother-in-law of Kenneth Snodgrass. He arrived on the Mary Hope in 1828. Major Sullivan was appointed Police Magistrate at Raymond Terrace in 1837. He established the Thalaba estate on the Williams River and married Isabella Barbara Ogilvie at Wollombi in 1847


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CAPTAIN THOMAS THOMPSON - 46th regt

Thomas Thompson was appointed commandant of the Newcastle penal settlement and also a magistrate of that settlement in 1814. It was reported in the Sydney Gazette that in March 1814 Lieut. Thompson and his detachment of the 46th regiment were ordered to relieve the detachment of the 73rd at Newcastle. They embarked on the Endeavour owned by Isaac Nicholls and commanded by Captain Theodore Walker. They reached Newcastle on March 16th 1814 and as soon as Lieut. Thompson landed with his detachment he assumed command of the settlement and Lieut. Skottowe with his detachment marched on board the Endeavour. The event was observed with every possible mark of attention. There was a display of bunting at the signal station and extra supply of grog and rations, concluding a little military display and much cheering for the old and new commandants. Thomas Thompson was appointed Captain in the 46th regiment in September 1815 and joined his regiment on the Dick bound for Madras in 1817.


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LIEUT. A CHARLES H. VILLIERS - NSW Corps

Lieutenant Villiers was appointed Commandant at Newcastle penal settlement in 1808. He was granted 280 acres - Villiers Farm at Orchard Hills in 1809


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LIEUT. RICHARD WADDY - 50th regt; Mounted Police

Richard Waddy arrived in command of the Guard on the convict ship Hive in 1834. He succeeded Lieut. Steele in the Mounted Police at Maitland in 1835. In 1836 he was based in Goulburn and reported to be tracking bushrangers near the Snowy Mountains. There was a Presentation by the residents at Campbelltown to mark their esteem of Lieut. Waddy in 1846. He died in 1881 - Obituary July 1881 - News has been received by cablegram of the death on the 10th instn. of General Sir Richard Waddy in the 67th year of his age. We learn from the peerage that he was the eldest son of the late Cadwallader Waddy, Esq., of Kilmacoe (Capt 69th foot and M.P. for Wexford) by Margaret, daughter of Joseph Swan, Esq., of Buckstown. Born 1814, he married Anne Eliza daughter of William Cordeaux, Esq., Commissary General in Australia (in 1840). He entered the army in 1832; became Captain in 1841; in 1854 Lieut-Colonel 50th foot, with which he served at the Battle of Punnjar; commanded the 50th at the battles of the Alma, Inkermann and the siege of Seastopol; was wounded in the trenches October 1854 for which he received a medal the C.B.; served in NZ in the campaigns of 1864 - 65; was Colonel on the staff there till January 1865; and Brigadier General from the last date till promoted to be Major General in the army March 1868; Colonel of the 63rd Foot October 1877. Two of his sons are in this colony and one is in England. The eldest, Richard is managing a branch of the Commercial Bank at Morpeth; the second, Percy is managing a branch of the same monetary institution at Orange the third is a Captain in the 13th regt of Light Infantry. Sir Richard left a widow and two married daughters. Sydney Morning Herald 15 July 1881


CAPTAIN JAMES WALLIS

James Wallis was the second son of James Wallis, of Cork, Ireland, and his wife Lucinda, nee Hewson. He was appointed ensign in the 46th Regiment in December 1803 and lieutenant in April 1804, distinguishing himself in action against the French in Dominica. He was appointed captain on 19 December 1811, and arrived in Sydney with his regiment on 7 February 1814 in the convict transport General Hewitt. In April 1816 he commanded a company of grenadiers of the 46th Regiment against hostile Aboriginals near Airds and Appin, and received the thanks of Governor Lachlan Macquarie for 'zealous exertions and strict attention to the fulfilling of the instructions'. On 1 June 1816 he was appointed to relieve Lieutenant Thompson as commandant at Newcastle.


LIEUT JONATHAN WARNER - NSW Veteran Corps

Jonathan Warner was born in Lymington, Hampshire. He arrived in Australia on 12 September 1826 on the ship Orpheus with other members of the Royal New South Wales Veterans After retiring from military service, he worked as an assistant surveyor of roads and bridges. In 1828 he examined a line of road recommended by Percy Simpson, causing him to travel through the Lake Macquarie area. It was here in July 1829, that he selected 1280 acres at the northern end of the lake. Warner had settled on the land by 1831 and established a farm with an orchard and a house overlooking the bay.


CAPTAIN HARVEY WELMAN - 57th regt

Harvey Welman was born at Tintern Wexford Ireland c. 1785. Joined 57th regiment in 1802., He served at the battles of Roleia, Vimeira and Corunna and with the expedition to Waleberen in 1809; and subsequently in the Peninsula including the siege of Tarragona in 1811 and San Sebastian in September 1813. He was a Jury member at Maitland NSW in 1830. See also Last of the Tasmanians: or the Black war of Van Diemen's Land published by James Bonwick. Captain Welman died 3 May 1869 at Launceston Tasmania.


CAPTAIN SAMUEL WRIGHT - 3rd regt (Buffs)

Samuel Wright was born in County Cavan, Ireland circa 1788. He joined the Buffs, the 3rd Regiment (Infantry) of the British Army on 6 March 1806 as an ensign with a purchased commission and was promoted to Lieutenant by 1810. He fought in the Peninsular wars and was wounded at Albeura in 1811 and in 1813 at Bayonne. He was with the Regiment in Canada when North America was seeking independence before returning to Europe and Ireland. Captain Wright arrived in Australia in 1822 on the Richmond. He became Commandant at Macquarie Harbour penal colony, Commandant of the Port Macquarie penal settlement and Superintendent of Police at Newcastle. He died in 1852.


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CAPTAIN HENRY ZOUCH - 4th regiment; Mounted Police

Henry Zouch was born c. 1811 in Quebec, son of Colonel Zouch Commander of a British regiment during the American War of 1812-1814. He was educated at the Sandhurst Military College and appointed Ensign in 1826. Henry Zouch arrived as a passenger on the Asia in 1831. He was appointed to the Command of the Mounted Police at Bathurst in 1833. In 1834 he was stationed at Newcastle with 30 - 40 men of the 4rd regiment and was a character witness at the trial of William Hitchcock in the Castle Forbes affair. In 1835 with a party of troopers Zouch established that the botanist Richard Cunningham had been murdered by Aboriginals. He married Maria Brooks daughter of Richard Brooks in 1836. Appointed Commissioner for Crown Lands in the Gold districts in 1851; and Superintendent of Police in 1861. He died of sunstroke in 1883. More about Henry Zouch at Biography at Australian Police site.


Mounted Police in the Hunter Valley



Notes


[1] Goold, W.J., Our Pioneers, The Newcastle and District Historical Society Monthly Journal, vol. XI., October 1956

[2] Wellington's Men Remembered: A Register of Memorials to Soldiers ..., Volume 1 By Janet Bromley, David Bromley