William Henry Charles Fullwood (15 March 1910 – 17 February 2005), better known as Bill Fullwood, was an Australian painter. He is considered one of the most significant artists from the Barkly region of the Northern Territory of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

, best known for his depictions of scenes of the Barkly region. He was a long-term resident and mining pioneer of Tennant Creek. The historic Tuxworth Fullwood House is named after him.

Early life

Fullwood was born in London in 1910. He began working in the mining industry from the age of 18. He moved to Perth as a two-year-old. At the age of 14, he began traveling around Western Australia carrying only a swag and his shoes, that he wore only when he arrived at a station to prevent unnecessary wear and tear. Fullwood worked at Meekathara Mine and later at Kartabaya Station. On one journey he walked from Geraldton to Carnarvon. He also met his first wife in 1940. Fullwood enlisted in the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

in Perth in 1939. He trained as an armorer in the 100th Squadron at Bairnsdale. He later specialised in aircraft hydraulics and was stationed in different parts of New Guinea. After the war, Fullwood worked in mining in Western Australia, Queensland and South Australia. Fullwood moved to Tennant Creek in 1947, hitching a ride from

Alice Springs Alice Springs ( aer, Mparntwe) is the third-largest town in the Northern Territory of Australia. Known as Stuart until 31 August 1933, the name Alice Springs was given by surveyor William Whitfield Mills after Alice, Lady Todd (''née'' Al ...

to take up a job constructing shafts on the Mount Samuel mine. He described the town as "pretty rough" and "dusty" at the time. He then went on to develop and manage the Whippet mining lease and then worked in a variety of roles at Nobles Nob mine. He also took up gold mining leases of his own. By 1954, he became an agent servicing the Warrumunga Goldfield. Fullwood met his second wife Marjorie Cowan in Tennant Creek. They married in April 1950 in

Kalgoorlie Kalgoorlie is a city in the Goldfields–Esperance region of Western Australia, located east-northeast of Perth at the end of the Great Eastern Highway. It is sometimes referred to as Kalgoorlie–Boulder, as the surrounding urban area includ ...

in Western Australia, returning to Tennant Creek shortly after. They built their own home from scrap metal sourced from Darwin after World War II.

Art career

Fullwood took up watercolour painting while recovering in Darwin after an accident, eventually switching to oil paints. The majority of his works are held by the Country Women's Association's Tennant Creek Branch as part of the Tennant Creek Art Collection. He was also a musician, who played

mandolin A mandolin ( it, mandolino ; literally "small mandola") is a stringed musical instrument in the lute family and is generally plucked with a pick. It most commonly has four courses of doubled strings tuned in unison, thus giving a total of 8 ...

and piano accordion.

Later life

In later life, Fullwood was committed to preserving Tennant Creek's history. He was critical to the development of the mining museum, housed in the Tuxworth Fullwood House, a former World War II hospital now after him and Hilda Tuxworth. Fullwood died on 17 February 2005 from pneumonia. He is buried in the Tennant Creek Cemetery with his wife Marjorie.

References

External links

Oral History, Northern Territory Archives Service

Unedited interview with Bill Fullwood of Tennant Creek about his early days, and mining in the Northern Territory, Charles Darwin University
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fullwood, Bill 2005 deaths 1910 births Australian artists Tennant Creek British emigrants to Australia