Adoniah Vallack was listed in the London Standard as one
of the Gentlemen to whom the Court of Examiners of the Apothecaries Hall had
granted Certificates of Qualification in 1836. He arrived in Sydney on the
Eweretta in November 1837. Two of his brothers also came to Australia -
William and Charles.
He had been a surgeon in Singleton for
nine years when he was appointed Surgeon to Edmund Kennedy's surveying
expedition rescue in 1848.
After his appointment, he placed an advertisement calling for debts to be
settled. All his belongings were auctioned at his Hunter Street
residence by Mr. Crofton soon after. The furniture comprised 'excellent dining,
Pembroke, dressing and other tables; chests of drawers, book case, sofas,
chairs, two large chiffoniers, wash stands, looking glasses, bed stands, beds,
blankets, bed and table linen superior violin, writing desk, medicine chest,
brass and other fenders, glass and earthenware, a quantity of valuable books,
chest carpenters tools and culinary utensils'
A splendid white Arab mare
broken in to saddle and harness, Eight brood mares and
foals, a superior gig with single and tandem harness
complete, were also go under the hammer as well as two
saddles and bridles, nearly new, four tons of Lucerne hay
and a small herd of cattle.
His substantial brick
built cottage with its large garden in Hunter Street was
also to be sold. The house contained two sitting rooms, 15
feet square, two bed rooms with verandah in front, and a detached kitchen. There
were two stables, one with four and other three stalls and gig house; and a well
with never failing water. The garden was said to be tastefully laid out and well
stocked with choice fruit trees and vines and substantially fenced all round
Adoniah Vallack was well
respected in the district. He lived in the town and
entered town life, helping to establish an
Agricultural Society, attending public dinners,
raising funds for worthy causes, giving lectures at the
Mechanics Institute and offering himself as candidate in
elections. And he had attended the sick and injured in the
town for all of that time.
The respect he held in the
town is evident in the following account of a case that was
heard by the Magistrates in Singleton in 1846. The case was
one of assault and battery - Bailey v. Vallack - and caused
a great stir in the town; the court house was crowded and
much amusement was afforded . Dr. Vallack 'did not deny the
assault, but admitted that the had given the plaintiff a
sound thrashing, in consequence of being provoked to adopt
such an alternative by the acrimonious and insulting manner
of the plaintiff. The defendant was of necessity cast, as
the law was imperative. A sixpenny subscription was
immediately started in town, to indemnify the defendant in
the fine and costs, and in the course of an hour one hundred
sixpences were raised and duly presented. "Out of evil often
cometh good," saith the proverb, and this sum, we have
heard, will be handed over to the treasurer of the Singleton Benevolent Society
'
Adoniah Vallack's friends were
to organise a public dinner in his honour before he left the
district.
In March 1849 Dr. Vallack was thanked by the Government for his
part in the rescue party.
Sir - With reference to the extract from your
journal, which was received on the 7th instant, I have the
honour to state for your information, that the perusal
thereof has satisfied the government that every thing was
done which was possible, under the circumstances, for the
relief of the unfortunate individuals belonging to the late
Mr. Kennedy's expedition whom he found it necessary, from
their exhausted condition, to leave at Shelbourne and
Weymouth Bays; and especially that your exertions, under
circumstances of great peril, surrounded by a numerous and
hostile tribe of natives, in rescuing the survivors at the
latter place, are deserving the thanks of the government. I
have the honour to add, that your zeal and efficient
performance of the important duties entrusted to you
abundantly show that you possess in a high degree the
qualifications requisite for the enterprise in which you so
readily undertook to render your services available to the
local government. E. Deas Thompson
According to his
Obituary, he travelled extensively to California and Canada before returning
to his family estate at Kinsand near Plymouth where he died in 1872.
Title: Narrative of an expedition, undertaken under the
direction of the late Mr. Assistant Surveyor E. B. Kennedy, for the exploration
of the country lying between Rockingham Bay and Cape York. by Wm. Carron, one of
the survivors of the expedition. To which are added, 1. The statement of the
aboriginal native, Jackey Jackey, who accompanied Mr. Kennedy. / 2. The
statement of Dr. Vallack and Captain Dobson, who rescued the survivors of the
expedition; and
3. The statement of Captain Simpson of the "Freak," who
proceeded in search of Mr. Kennedy's papers, &c. [incl. three additional
statements by Matthew Clarke, John Davis, & Mr. MacNate].
