Hunter Valley Settlers Map 8

Hunter Valley Settlers on this Map

Hugh Cameron William Dangar William Dumaresq - St. Aubins Thomas Potter Macqueen H.C. Sempill - Segenhoe Peter McIntyre

Peter McIntyre was born in Perthshire, Scotland in 1783, the son of Donald and Mary McIntyre.

In 1824 he was appointed agent for Thomas Potter Macqueen who had received a 10,000 acre grant of land in New South Wales. McIntyre organised immigrants, livestock and supplies and sailed on the Nimrod and Hugh Crawford arriving in Sydney in 1825.

McIntyre also secured a 4000 acre grant from Governor Darling for himself and another 4000 acres for his brother John ('Weedon'). He was involved in legal battles with government surveyor Henry Dangar culminating in Dangar's suspension from the position. McIntyre's estate 'Blairmore' was situated near Aberdeen.

McIntyre guided Allan Cunningham over the Liverpool Ranges in 1827 and the McIntyre River is named in his honour. He and his brother Donald had squatting runs on the Liverpool Plains - Byron Plains, Falconer, Kayuga, Waterloo and Guyra. He was replaced as Macqueen's agent by Hamilton Collings Sempill in 1830.

Peter McIntyre died at Pitnacree near Maitland on 13 January 1842.

William Dangar

William Dangar was born at Lampen, England close to the village of St. Neot on 10 March 1800. He travelled to Australia on the 'Cumberland' in 1825 with his brother Thomas. Their brother Henry Dangar was already in the colony.

Henry was employed as Government Surveyor and William managed Henry's estates for over ten years. He also acquired land for himself - 800 acres near Scone was granted ('Turanville') and he was given permission to purchase 1800 acres adjacent to Turnaville between Dartbrook and Kingdon Ponds. Later, in 1837 a stock station of 35,840 acres - 'Kangaroo Hills' was added to his properties. He employed a superintendent to run this property and was advertising the position in 1848 14

Thomas Dangar was postmaster at Scone and proprietor of the St. Aubin's Arms Inn. A younger brother Richard Cary Dangar arrived in 1836 and commenced a Store in Muswellbrook. Brother John, died in 1847 aged 37 and was buried in St. Luke's Churchyard, Scone. Their sister Elizabeth married Samuel Wellington Cook.

As well as managing his Estates and those belonging to his brother Henry, William was Churchwarden of St. Luke's Church and a District Councillor at Scone.14 He was also a partner in the meat cannery at Newcastle.

William returned to England in 1857.

He died in Cheltenham, England on 16 April 1868 and was buried in St. Neot. A memorial plaque in St. Neot Church records:

'Sacred to the memory of William Dangar, who died at Cheltenham on 16th April 1868; in the 68th year of his age. He was one of the earliest settlers in New south Wales, where, during a continued residence of thirty five years he attained by his energetic spirit of enterprise, and by ceaseless activity , an honorable position, whilst he also largely contributed to the success of that Colony, in which, as well as in this parish, his memory will be respected' 29

Hugh Cameron

Hugh Cameron was the Scottish settler who was responsible for the name 'Scone' being adopted for the nearby township after he petitioned the Surveyor General, Thomas Mitchell.

Cameron had been granted 1280 acres of land by Governor Darling on 18 October 1828. His station at Kingdon Ponds was robbed in 1831 by bushrangers Bowen, Duffy, Finney and Mason and Hugh Cameron was a witness at their trial. He stated that knew John Mason and Hugh Duffy who absconded from the service of Mr. Dangar. The bushrangers were apprehended by Sgt. Quigley of the mounted police. They had with them a few farming implements, seed and provisions and hoped to go far into the bush to settle. Mason and Duffy along with Edward Bowen and Patrick Finney were found guilty of robbing Cameron and were sentenced to death.

In 1839 Hugh Cameron and his wife wife Janet conveyed this land to William Black. William Dangar later claimed Deed of grant to this land. 31

Captain William Dumaresq

'St. Aubins'

Sir Edward Parry visited St. Aubin's in 1832. He had previously visited St. Heliers, the estate of Colonel Henry Dumaresq and found it a beautiful estate however when Colonel Henry Dumaresq's brother William took him on a tour of his own estate St. Aubins, Parry was far less impressed stating afterwards that he did not like it at all. St. Aubins was an estate of 13,000 acres owned by William, who had recently resigned from his position of surveyor of roads and bridges in the colony and moved there where probably with the use of convict labour he built a wooden homestead.

Convicts at St. Aubins in 1832 included William Kennealy, Lewis Ward, William Jones and Robert Morrison.

William had married Christiana Susan Macleay, daughter of Alexander Macleay in 1830, and on 3 December 1832 Christiana gave birth to a son at St. Aubins. Six years later Alexander Macleay accompanied the body of William's brother Henry on the long journey back to St. Heliers after Henry had died at the Australian Agricultural Company settlement at Port Stephens.

Thomas Potter Macqueen

'Segenhoe'

Sir Edward Parry visited 'Segenhoe', the estate of Thomas Potter Macqueen, in March 1832. He arrived on a Monday morning having been driven by Captain Dumaresq of 'St. Aubins'. Sir Edward had heard much of Segenhoe estate and was eager to see it. He found it 'most excellent and desirable' with fine well watered land and good natural boundaries. No expense had been spared on the roads in that area and Sir Edward thought they were equal to and much resembling the roads in a gentleman's park in England. He was very impressed and preferred it to any estate he had seen so far in the Colony. He was received by Mr. Sempill's wife and sister, Mr. Sempill being absent at the time.

However Sir Edward had met Mr. Sempill previously. It was a chance meeting in Sydney in January 1831 that changed the future of the Australian Agricultural company (and its workers). Mr. Sempill on meeting Sir Edward offered to sell on behalf of Mr. MacQueen, a threshing machine. In the course of the meeting he informed Sir Edward of excellent quality of land on the Liverpool Plains for sheep breeding. They went immediately to the Surveyor General's office to inspect maps which convinced Sir Edward to arrange for the exchange of the company's coastal land for land at Warrah and Goonoo Goonoo on the Liverpool Plains.

There were numerous assigned servants at Segenhoe in 1832 who may have been working on the estate when Sir Edward visited. Among servants assigned at Segenhoe in 1832 were: William Powell and John Taff who arrived on the 'Portland', Henry Hall a glass cutter from Warwick and Dominick Herkins a soldier and labourer who had been convicted in Jamaica, both arrived on the Asia in 1832 and Charles Bevan carpenter and joiner who arrived on the Adrian in 1830

There was also a hospital on the estate, as in 1833 John McLeod Gillies was employed as a hospital assistant. John Porteus and Benjamin Lee were indented servants. Benjamin Lee arrived on the Thames in 1829. He was sent by Macqueen from England to be assistant Superintendent at Segenhoe under orders of P. McIntyre, Macqueens agent. Although under employment contract, he waited many months for wages, eventually instigating court proceedings to recover funds owing to him. John Porteus (Portus) was a millwright and arrived on the Hugh Crawford in 1825. He became well known throughout the district and constructed a steam mill in 1840 known as Morpeth Wheat Mills.

Thomas Potter Macqueen was born at Segenhoe Manor, Ridgmont, Bedfordshire in 1791 to Malcolm and Marianne (Potter) Macqueen. After reading the Bigge report with interest, Macqueen evolved a plan to develop the colony with settlers with sufficient capital to employ convicts on their own account.

He was granted 10,000 acres of land by Governor Brisbane in 1825 and appointed Peter McIntyre as his Manager. McIntyre selected mechanics, farmers and shepherds and equipped with farm machinery, stores, sheep, horses and stud cattle sailed for New South Wales on the ships Nimrod and Hugh Crawford. Once in New South Wales, McIntyre selected this land near Scone which was named Segenhoe. The indented servants and assigned servants then began clearing and establishing buildings and gardens.

However, Macqueen was apparently dissatisfied with McIntyre's work as his manager and he had replaced McIntyre with Hamilton Collins Sempill by 1830. H.C. Sempill's wife Susannah who greeted Sir Edward Parry on his arrival at Segenhoe in March 1832 was a sister of John Dow who in later was employed as a superintendent at Sempill's 'Belltrees'. Her sister with her at Segenhoe that day was Agnes Dow who later married James Busby

Hamilton Collins Sempill and his family occupied the main homestead at Segenhoe until 1834 when Macqueen decided to come to Australia. The Sempills were then forced to find other accommodation, first living in a smaller unsatisfactory building and then later building a permanent home at Belltrees. Sempill had acquired much land on his own behalf since his arrival - Ardenhall, Huntingdon and Aberfoyle among them and also the beautiful 'Belltrees.' Later Sempill was to run into financial difficulties in the 'hungry forties'. He sold his properties and returned to Scotland where he remained. 30

In 1833, MacQueen's wife Anne Astley had passed away and by 1834 Macqueen sold his English estate to the Duke of Bedford and journeyed to New south Wales himself. He arrived in Hobart on the 'Bardaster' in June 1834 and travelled to Segenhoe where we was appointed Magistrate for the district by July of that year. He became known for his extravagance at the estate. A town house was also purchased at Darlinghurst, Sydney and in 1835 Macqueen attended a levee at Government House, Sydney to celebrate the King's birthday.

By January 1838, Macqueen was in financial difficulties and a notice appeared in the Sydney Gazette of the extensive sale of his stock. He was to sell by auction all of his 'fine woolled sheep and other stock' prior to leaving the colony and by 1852 he was living in Banbury, Oxford and all his estates had been sold

Thomas Potter Macqueen died in 1854.

Select here to read Thomas potter Macqueen's evidence before a Select Committee enquiring into Secondary Punishment of convicts.

Thoughts and Suggestions on the present condition of the country by Thomas Potter Macqueen

Sources

14. Maitland Mercury

29. Dangar, Elisabeth Mary, William Dangar of Turanville, Scone & Upper Hunter HIstorical Society 1968

30. White, Judy, The White Family of Belltrees,The Seven Press, Sydney 1981.,p17

31 SG. 2 July 1839

32 Wood, W. Allan, Dawn in the Valley, Wentworth Books, 1972.

This page was last updated on 31/01/2010