Edward Hugh Barron (8 Aug 1796 - 23 Feb 1863), was a soldier and pioneer in the

Swan River Colony The Swan River Colony, also known as the Swan River Settlement, or just Swan River, was a British colony established in 1829 on the Swan River, in Western Australia. This initial settlement place on the Swan River was soon named Perth, and it ...

Early life

Barron was born in Donegal, Ireland. On 8 July 1817, at age 20, he joined the

63rd Regiment of Foot The 63rd Regiment of Foot was a British Army regiment raised in 1756. Under the Childers Reforms, it amalgamated with the 96th Regiment of Foot to form the Manchester Regiment in 1881. History Formation and service in the Seven Years' War The for ...

. On 27 November 1819 he married Jane Catherine Pearson (11 Nov 1800 – 23 Feb 1878) in

Cumberland, England Cumberland ( ) is a historic county in the far North West England. It covers part of the Lake District as well as the north Pennines and Solway Firth coast. Cumberland had an administrative function from the 12th century until 1974. From 1 ...

Swan River Colony

Barron travelled to the Swan River Colony as colour sergeant of the 63rd Regiment on board arriving 8 June 1829. When the regiment left Western Australia in March 1834, Barron was one of eleven men allowed to stay in the colony with their wives and children. Jane Barron is believed to have been the first European woman to step onto the shores of the colony.

Wheat Sheaf Tavern

Barron opened the Wheat Sheaf Tavern at 1

Murray Street, Perth Murray Street is one of four main east-west roads within the Perth central business district (CBD). History The street, the central portion of which has become a pedestrian mall, was named after Sir George Murray, Secretary of State for War ...

, on the north-west corner of the intersection of Murray and

Barrack Street Barrack Street is one of two major cross-streets in the Perth central business district, central business district of Perth, Western Australia. Together with St Georges Terrace, Wellington Street, Perth, Wellington Street and William Street, Pe ...

. Baron later sold this and opened the United Services Tavern in

St Georges Terrace St Georges Terrace (colloquially known as "The Terrace") is the main street in the city of Perth, Western Australia. It runs parallel to the Swan River and forms the major arterial road through the central business district. Its western e ...

and later the Criterion Hotel on Howick Street (now Hay Street) which still trades as Perth's oldest public house. As Barron was still in the Army, his wife Jane ran the business due to complaints from settlers regarding soldiers running businesses. Barron ran many businesses including a dairy and built and let several houses. He also had the government contract for mail delivery between Perth and

Guildford Guildford () is a town in west Surrey, around southwest of central London. As of the 2011 census, the town has a population of about 77,000 and is the seat of the wider Borough of Guildford, which had around inhabitants in . The name "Guildf ...

and had the contract for government stores and delivery of firewood to government offices.

Murray district

On 15 July 1834 Barron travelled to

Mandurah Mandurah () is a coastal city in the Australian state of Western Australia, situated approximately south of the state capital, Perth. It is the state's second most populous city, with a population of 107,641 as of the 2021 Australian census, 2 ...

for the purpose of buying a horse from

Thomas Peel Thomas Peel (1793 – 22 December 1865)Alexandra Hasluck,, ''Australian Dictionary of Biography'', Vol. 2, MUP, 1967, pp 320-322. retrieved 2009-11-04 organised and lead a consortium of the first British settlers to Western Australia. He was ...

. Peel told Barron the mare was lost in the bush and to wait for local Aboriginals to attend for their flour ration whereby they could be asked to show where the mare was. The Aboriginals who attended the house indicated they did know where the mare was, and Barron and Hugh Nesbitt, of the

21st Regiment of Foot First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

, and the group, including local Aboriginal leader

Calyute Calyute (''Floruit, fl.'' 1833–1840), also known as Kalyute, Galyute or Wongir, was an Indigenous Australian resistance leader who was involved in a number of reprisal attacks with white settlers and members of other tribes in the early days of ...

, set off. During the ride Barron and Nesbitt were ambushed, with three spears hitting Barron as he rode away and Nesbitt being killed. Barron was badly wounded and conveyed back to Perth. This incident was a catalyst for the Pinjarra Massacre.

Later life

Barron and his wife Jane had 12 children, 9 of them born in the colony. Their son Edward George Barron (17 September 1829 - 4 March 1901) was reputed to be the

first white child The birth of the first white child is a concept that marks the establishment of a European colony in the New World, especially in the historiography of the United States. Americas Canada Snorri Thorfinnsson, born around 1010 in the Viking settle ...

born in the colony. Three sons joined the

Western Australia Police The Western Australia Police Force, colloquially WAPOL, provides police services throughout the state of Western Australia, an area of 2.5 million square kilometres, the world's largest non-federated area of jurisdiction, with a population ...

: Edward, John, and Charles. Barron died 23 January 1863 in Perth and is interred at

East Perth Cemeteries East Perth Cemeteries was the first cemetery established for the Swan River Colony in 1829 in East Perth, Western Australia, East Perth, Western Australia. It is estimated that as many as 10,000 people were buried there between 1829 and 1919 in ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barron, Edward Hugh Burials at East Perth Cemeteries Irish emigrants to colonial Australia Settlers of Western Australia 1796 births 1863 deaths