William Williams (brewer)
William Williams (c. 1803 – 26 April 1858) was an early settler in the Province of South Australia, known for establishing the Walkerville Brewery and his work on the Kaurna language. He was deputy colonial storekeeper for some years.
Early days in South Australia
Williams arrived in the new colony at Holdfast Bay on 8 November 1836 aboard Africaine, one of the ships of the "First Fleet of South Australia".[Note 1]
On 5 January 1837 Williams was appointed as a constable,[2] along with Joseph Lee, at an annual salary of ₤30, with William Archer Deacon as chief constable. He was sent with a commission comprising George Stevenson (secretary to Governor Gawler, Thomas Bewes Strangways and Henry Jickling, to investigate disturbances on Kangaroo Island which had occurred in September 1836. The three constables were sworn in on 7 March 1837.[3][4] There were frequent drunken brawls owing to an abundant supply of rum on the island. However his appointment was terminated within about six months, in July of that year.[5][2][6]
Williams was deputy colonial storekeeper (an office involving responsibility for all government stores) to Thomas Gilbert, working at the "Government Iron Stores [on] Montefiore Hill".[2] The location of the Store was at the place known by the Kaurna people as Tininyawardli (or Tinninyawodli), which was just south of where Strangways Terrace was later built. It is near Piltawodli, which name has been adopted for Park 1 of the Adelaide parklands.[7]
Williams, along with James Cronk, who also arrived on Africaine, made a deliberate effort to find and communicate with the local Aboriginal people, the Kaurna, or "Adelaide tribe". He was observed to make friends with a group of local people near Glenelg within a couple of weeks of arrival, and Cronk made an effort to learn the Kaurna language early.[8] Both men were reportedly "great favorites of the natives",[9] and became designated interpreters by the colonial officials. On 1 November 1838 they both assisted Protector of Aborigines, William Wyatt when Governor Gawler first met the local people,[8] including Onkaparinga Jack and Captain Jack (a.k.a. Murlawirrapurka and Kadlitpinna, both native constables).[9][10]
Williams created a list of 377 Kaurna words, published in the Southern Australian on 15 May 1839 and republished in the The South Australian Colonist in the following year.[7] His work entitled A vocabulary of the language of the Aborigines of the Adelaide district, and other friendly tribes, of the Province of South Australia was self-published in 1839, to be sold in London as well as Adelaide. In the preface, he writes respectfully and affectionately of the Kaurna people.[11]
Career as merchant and brewer
Williams was the second person in the Province of South Australia to hold a liquor licence, applying for two licences on 16 June 1837 (one for wine, beer and other malt liquors, and the other for spirits), but was not the first brewer.[12] He first purchased a town acre in Hindley Street in May 1838, opening a pub called the Grazier's Hotel. He then started trading in cattle, and also did business in timber and land. His brother-in-law Edward Catchlove built a grander establishment named the Victoria Hotel. This was replaced a year later by an even more upmarket establishment of the same name built over the road (on the northern side, now no. 94 Hindley Street) and opened in March 1840, with the earlier building turned over to the South Australia Club, a private club for the elite. After leasing out the new Victoria, Williams traded in real estate on the Adelaide plains, building enough capital to build the Walkerville Brewery in 1847.[13]
Williams gained notoriety in 1851 for his obstruction to the formation of the Walkerville Anglican Church committee,[14] although according to the church website, Williams gave the land on which the church was built in 1848.[15]
Family
He married Jane Catchlove[2] (c. 1811 – 20 April 1885) on 2 July 1837. Jane arrived in South Australia in November 1836 aboard Tam O'Shanter with her father Edward William Catchlove and three brothers and sisters. Henry Catchlove of Hindmarsh Brewery was an uncle.[citation needed] William and Jane had eight children,[2] among them William Huey Williams MD was educated at AEI and SPC, appointed Resident House Physician, Royal infirmary Liverpool; and Mary Laura Williams (1845 – 13 November 1880) married Thomas Moseley, son of Henry Moseley of Glenelg, on 25 October 1877.[citation needed]
Death
He died on 26 April 1858,[16] destitute. A subscription organised to benefit his widow and seven remaining children[17] was well patronised.[18]
Footnotes
- ^ He is not to be confused with William S. Williams (c. 1817 – 17 August 1859), also on the "First Fleet of South Australia" aboard Cygnet, married Maria Wickham (1820 – 17 February 1872),[1] with her parents aboard Africaine, on 12 August 1839.[citation needed] This man's will & probate are available here on FamilySearch (needs login).
References
- ^ "Family Notices [Death notice for Maria]". South Australian Chronicle And Weekly Mail. Vol. XIV, , no. 706. South Australia. 24 February 1872. p. 8. Retrieved 11 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
...relict of the late William Williams (who arrived in the ship Cygnet in 1836)
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ a b c d e "William Williams[B 5839]" (Photograph and text.). State Library of South Australia. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
- ^ "Historical Records of the Early Settlement on Kangaroo Island". The Kangaroo Island Courier. Vol. XXIV, , no. 3. 24 January 1931. p. 3. Retrieved 12 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "Obstreperous Kangaroo Island". Kangaroo Island Pioneers Association. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
- ^ "South Australia gets its first special /high constables for law and order from 1837 – soon after colony proclaimed". AdelaideAZ. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
- ^ Manning, Geoff. "Police". Manning Index of South Australian History. State Library of South Australia. Retrieved 12 January 2021.
- ^ a b Amery, Rob. "Piltawodli Native Location (1838-1845)". German missionaries in Australia. Griffith University. Retrieved 8 December 2019.
- ^ a b Amery, Rob (2016). "4. A Sociolinguistic History of Kaurna". Warraparna Kaurna!: Reclaiming an Australian language. JSTOR Open Access monographs. University of Adelaide Press. p. 57-68. ISBN 978-1-925261-25-7. Retrieved 11 January 2021 – via JSTOR. (Also on Google Books.)
- ^ a b "George Milner Stephen". Kangaroo Island Pioneers Association. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
- ^ Stephen, George M. (27 November 1838). "Reply". The Australian. Vol. V, , no. 569. New South Wales, Australia. p. 2. Retrieved 10 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ Williams, William (1839), A vocabulary of the language of the Aborigines of the Adelaide district, and other friendly tribes, of the Province of South Australia, Published for the author by A. Macdougall, retrieved 11 January 2021
- ^ "Liquor Trading in early South Australian History". Flinders Ranges Research. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
With special thanks to Lance Merritt for his research.
- ^ "Adelaide Hotels - Facts - Adelaide Hills". LocalWiki. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
- ^ "Walkerville Church Case". Adelaide Times. Vol. II, no. 360. South Australia. 20 January 1851. p. 3. Retrieved 10 February 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "History". St Andrew's Church Walkerville. 6 February 2016. Retrieved 11 January 2021.
- ^ "Family Notices". Adelaide Times. Vol. XII, , no. 2297. South Australia. 28 April 1858. p. 2. Retrieved 11 January 2021 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) } - ^ "Provision for the Widow". South Australian Register. Vol. XXII, no. 3629. South Australia. 25 May 1858. p. 1. Retrieved 1 March 2018 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Advertising". Adelaide Observer. Vol. XVI, no. 869. South Australia. 29 May 1858. p. 1. Retrieved 1 March 2018 – via National Library of Australia.