Benjamin Singleton (1788–1853) was a

free settler A settler is a person who has migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a pioneer. Settle ...

miller A miller is a person who operates a Gristmill, mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Mill (grinding), Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surname ...

, and explorer of Australia in the early period of British colonisation. He was born in England on 7 August 1788 and arrived in the

Colony of New South Wales The Colony of New South Wales was a colony of the British Empire from 1788 to 1901, when it became a State of the Commonwealth of Australia. At its greatest extent, the colony of New South Wales included the present-day Australian states of New ...

on 14 February 1792 in the ''Pitt'', a convict ship. His father, William, had been sentenced to transportation for seven years, and had brought his wife and two sons with him. An older son, James, arrived as a free settler in 1808.

Career as a miller

James and Benjamin built and operated several water-driven flour mills in the following years.

Exploration

In October 1817, Benjamin Singleton set out with a party of men including William Parr and Aboriginal guides to find a route, suitable for wagons, to the

Hunter River Hunter River may refer to: *Hunter River (New South Wales), Australia *Hunter River (Western Australia) *Hunter River, New Zealand *Hunter River (Prince Edward Island), Canada **Hunter River, Prince Edward Island, community on Hunter River, Canada ...

. They almost reached the Hunter Valley before turning back. In April 1818 he led a private expedition to the Hunter which was also unsuccessful. When, in 1819, John Howe managed to reach the Hunter, he followed in part the route discovered by Singleton and Parr. He had discovered some fine grazing land, but Howe was dissatisfied with the route. In February, 1820, John Howe left Windsor with a party of fifteen, including Benjamin Singleton and two Aboriginal guides. By following the advice of the guides they were able to find a route which became known as the Bulga Road. On 15 March they reached the Hunter, and followed its course upstream as far as

Maitland Maitland is an English and Scottish surname. It arrived in Britain after the Norman conquest of 1066. There are two theories about its source. It is either a nickname reference to "bad temper/disposition" (Old French, ''Maltalent''; Anglo Norm ...

. For his part in this expedition Singleton was granted , part of which became the site of the town of

Singleton Singleton may refer to: Sciences, technology Mathematics * Singleton (mathematics), a set with exactly one element * Singleton field, used in conformal field theory Computing * Singleton pattern, a design pattern that allows only one instance ...

Later occupations

Singleton used his land for grazing cattle while pursuing other activities. He was appointed to be a district constable, and continued his mill building business. He also built a horse-drawn boat, which was not a commercial success.

Death

He died on 2 May 1853, leaving a wife and ten children, and was buried in the Whittingham cemetery, near Singleton.

Singleton Council

The

Singleton Council Singleton Council is a local government area in the Hunter Region of New South Wales, Australia. It is situated adjacent to the New England Highway and the Main North railway line. The mayor of the council is Cr. Sue Moore, an independent p ...

publishes a brochure about Benjamin Singleton, and displays a copy on its website. It contains the story of his life and includes a photograph of the plaque on his grave. The plaque describes him as "Pioneer of the Hunter District and Founder of the Town of Singleton". It recounts that, in 1837, he donated land for a market square, which is now known as Burdekin Park. It also mentions him as making the first gifts of land to the Anglican and Presbyterian churches in the town.

References

External links

Benjamin Singleton - Map 4

Colonial Secretary's papers 1822-1877

State Library of Queensland The State Library of Queensland is the main reference and research library provided to the people of the State of Queensland, Australia, by the state government. Its legislative basis is provided by the Queensland Libraries Act 1988. It contai ...

- includes digitised letters written by Singleton to the

Colonial Secretary of New South Wales Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 ...

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singleton, Benjamin 1788 births 1853 deaths Explorers of Australia Settlers of New South Wales