John Barton Hack (2 July 1805 – 4 October 1884) was an early settler in South Australia; a prominent farmer, businessman and public figure. He lost his fortune in the financial crisis of 1840 and despite his best efforts, never regained anything like his former influence and prosperity. His son

Theodore Hack Theodore Hack (17 November 1840 – 27 December 1902) was a South Australian politician. He was born at Echunga, South Australia a son of John Barton Hack and his wife Bridget Hack, née Watson, and was educated at the Adelaide Educational Inst ...

, younger brother

Stephen Hack Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; h ...

and nephew Wilton Hack were all figures of some significance in the history of the Colony.

Early life

Hack was born in

Chichester Chichester () is a cathedral city and civil parish in West Sussex, England.OS Explorer map 120: Chichester, South Harting and Selsey Scale: 1:25 000. Publisher:Ordnance Survey – Southampton B2 edition. Publishing Date:2009. It is the only ci ...

, England to Stephen Hack, a banker, and the educational writer

Maria Hack Maria Hack (née Barton, 16 February 1777 – 4 January 1844) was an English writer of educational books for children that were praised for their clarity. She was involved in a theological controversy among the Quakers, which led to her joining t ...

(née Barton), sister of the poet

Bernard Barton Bernard Barton (31 January 1784 – 19 February 1849), was known as the Quaker poet. His main works included ''The Convict's Appeal'' (1818), in which he protested against the death penalty and the severity of the criminal code. Family Bernard ...

. He was educated at Southgate,

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

before going into the leather trade, building up a business in

Sussex Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...

. On 9 July 1827, Hack married Bridget Watson (born 27 September 1806), daughter of William Watson of Hardshaw, Lancashire. After an illness which affected his lungs, he was advised to move to a warmer climate. While in Portsmouth he met Captain

Thomas Lipson Captain Thomas Lipson (ca.1784 – 25 October 1863) was an officer in the Royal Navy, who, after a successful if unspectacular career in the Royal Navy, was appointed by the Admiralty as the first Harbourmaster, Harbour Master at South Australia, ...

, who was fitting out the "Buffalo" for its pioneering voyage to South Australia. This new colony captured his imagination. He read Robert Torrens's book ''The Colonization of South Australia'' and met with Edward Gibbon Wakefield and some members of the South Australian Company and was so convinced of the colony's future that he sold up his considerable business interests and purchased three 134-acre sections with their three accompanying town acres. In September 1836 he embarked with his wife, six children and younger brother Stephen (who was to become an explorer of some note and father of Wilton Hack), on the ''Isabella'', commanded by Captain Hart for the owner Griffiths of Launceston, Van Diemen's Land. A surprise last-minute addition to the passenger list was Sir John Jeffcott, who had been appointed Chief Justice of South Australia, and was "slipping away" surreptitiously to avoid creditors. The ''Isabellas first stop in Australia was Launceston, where he spent a month purchasing livestock and equipment, which were loaded on the ''Isabella'' for shipping to South Australia. His purchases included nearly 400 sheep, six cows and a bull, ten bullocks, a large wagon and a dray, three horses and a

Timor pony The Timor Pony was developed on Timor Island, likely from Indian breeds of horses and ponies that were imported to the island. The Timor Pony is thought to be closely related to the Flores Pony, which was developed on nearby Flores Island ...

. Another livestock importer from Launceston aboard the ''Isabella'' was Henry Jones (1799-1889), son of a prosperous London oil merchant, and, like Hack, an influential colonist.

From carting to farming

Arriving at

Holdfast Bay The Holdfast Bay is a small bay in Gulf St Vincent, next to Adelaide, South Australia. Along its shores lie the local government area of the City of Holdfast Bay and the suburbs of Glenelg and Glenelg North European settlement on Holdfast Bay ...

(again on the ''Isabella'', whose captain was the future South Australian Premier John Hart) in February 1837, his goods and livestock were unloaded, but by an oversight the sheep dispersed and were never recovered. He set up the two prefabricated two-room " Manning's Portable Cottages" he had loaded at Portsmouth; one at Glenelg and one in Adelaide, on the site of the present Railway Station. The bullock wagon was kept busy, carting goods between Holdfast Bay and Adelaide, making £15 in the first week apart from his own work. He was supplying milk (he purchased, for £27 a head, a herd of cows that were subsequently landed from South Africa) and, with his gardener, developing a garden in North Adelaide. In March 1837, at the beginning of the first land sales in

Adelaide Adelaide ( ) is the capital city of South Australia, the state's largest city and the fifth-most populous city in Australia. "Adelaide" may refer to either Greater Adelaide (including the Adelaide Hills) or the Adelaide city centre. The dem ...

, Hack purchased a further . In May he lost another consignment of sheep and cattle when the Isabella foundered on rocks off Cape Nelson. He built a more substantial residence in

Hindley Street Hindley Street is located in the north-west quarter of the centre of Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. It runs between King William Street and West Terrace. The street was named after Charles Hindley, a British parliamentarian and soc ...

, which a few years later the Government purchased for conversion into a police station. He purchased 1000 acres on the Little Para River for a dairy, and produced butter for sale in the city. He undertook some exploration of the country around Adelaide. On 27 November 1837, guided by his stockman Tom Davis, Hack in company with John Morphett, Samuel Stephens, Charles Stuart (South Australian Company's stock overseer), and John Wade (a "gentleman from Hobart Town"), were the first Europeans to ascend Mount Barker. Hack also became involved in public life, sitting on the Street Naming Committee, which decided the names of streets that now run through Adelaide city centre and

North Adelaide North Adelaide is a predominantly residential precinct and suburb of the City of Adelaide in South Australia, situated north of the River Torrens and within the Adelaide Park Lands. History Surveyor-General Colonel William Light of the colo ...

, as well as the Chamber of Commerce and several other bodies. As part of his business ventures, he was paid £800 for cutting the original channel in

Port Adelaide Port Adelaide is a port-side region of Adelaide, approximately northwest of the Adelaide CBD. It is also the namesake of the City of Port Adelaide Enfield council, a suburb, a federal and state electoral division and is the main port for the ...

. In 1838, he purchased Blenkinsop's whaling station at Encounter Bay (Blenkinsop had drowned with Sir John Jeffcott at the Murray Mouth the previous December). He squatted 400 head of cattle at Mount Barker, but was moved on in 1839. Not put off, he then bought of land at nearby Echunga Springs and made his home there. His farming venture was initially very successful and it was at this time that he planted some of the first wine-grape vines in the colony. A drawing of his farm by

George French Angas George French Angas (25 April 1822 – 4 October 1886), also known as G.F.A., was an English explorer, naturalist, painter and poet who emigrated to Australia. His paintings are held in a number of important Australian public art collections. ...

, possibly from a sketch by Gawler may be viewe
here
(A similar hand-tinted lithograph by J. Hitchen used by Gawler to support his strategy of attracting wealthy immigrants can be viewe
here
In 1839 he had formed the shipping agency Hack, Watson and Co. with brother-in-law Henry Watson, and spent much of his time and energy travelling between his home at Echunga and Port Adelaide.

The Recession and after

South Australia was plunged into an economic depression in 1841 when the South Australian Company repudiated debts incurred by Governor Gawler. Hack had numerous creditors who could not pay him, debts to the bank, workers to pay and other ongoing commitments with little coming in and no support from his bank. He was forced to sell his Echunga property and whaling interests at a huge discount. His shipping company ceased trading in 1842 and its assets were taken over by their U.K. manager, Jacob Hagen. Through Hack's efforts, a position was found for Watson as Chief Clerk in the Customs Department. In 1843, with little or no capital, Hack made a living with a bullock team, which he expanded in 1845 with several bullock drays carting copper ore from the new mines at Burra to Port Adelaide and living at Kapunda. He undertook several prospective diggings but found no minable copper. By 1848, he had interests in a timber business associated with the building of Christ Church in North Adelaide, but the death of the contractor and the loss of his workers to the Bendigo goldfields resulted in another business failure. In 1851 he went to the

Victorian Victorian or Victorians may refer to: 19th century * Victorian era, British history during Queen Victoria's 19th-century reign ** Victorian architecture ** Victorian house ** Victorian decorative arts ** Victorian fashion ** Victorian literature ...

goldfields Goldfield or Goldfields may refer to: Places * Goldfield, Arizona, the former name of Youngberg, Arizona, a populated place in the United States * Goldfield, Colorado, a community in the United States * Goldfield, Iowa, a city in the United State ...

, where he was modestly successful and returned to South Australia, where he was engaged as mercantile manager for the solicitor Atkinson (who he left in 1852), then with Hart and Hughes of Port Adelaide. In 1859 he purchased a dairy farm along the Coorong, which proved uneconomical. He tried sheep-farming in partnership with G. M. Brown but

footrot Foot rot, or infectious pododermatitis, is a hoof infection commonly found in sheep, goats, and cattle. As the name suggests, it rots away the foot of the animal, more specifically the area between the two toes of the affected animal. It is extreme ...

caused unsupportable losses and in 1863 the family returned to Adelaide. He worked as accountant for Henry Hill & Co., then

John Rounsevell John Rounsevell (c. 1836 – 15 May 1902) was a pastoralist and politician in the British colony of South Australia. His brother William Benjamin "Ben" Rounsevell was also a South Australian politician. History John Rounsevell was born in Landu ...

, then as an independent agent. Finally he was employed as an accountant for the

South Australian Railways South Australian Railways (SAR) was the statutory corporation through which the Government of South Australia built and operated railways in South Australia from 1854 until March 1978, when its non-urban railways were incorporated into Austr ...

from 1870 to 1883, when he retired, having reached the position of Controller of Railway Accounts.

Religion and social concerns

Hack was brought up as a

Quaker Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of Christian denomination, denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belie ...

, and many of the Adelaide church's first meetings were held at his home. He donated land on Pennington Terrace, North Adelaide, and contracted for erection there of the Friends’ meeting house, a prefabricated wooden building from the same H. Manning, which is still in use. One of his children, who died in infancy, was buried in its yard. He converted to Wesleyan Methodism in Kapunda around 1845 and later was active in church finance committees and management committee of Prince Alfred College. He was noted for his friendliness to Aboriginals and ex-convicts (notably one Jack Foley, who became a trusted employee to the extent of accompanying Stephen Hack to London in 1840), and as a

temperance Temperance may refer to: Moderation *Temperance movement, movement to reduce the amount of alcohol consumed *Temperance (virtue), habitual moderation in the indulgence of a natural appetite or passion Culture *Temperance (group), Canadian danc ...

advocate. He was a firm friend and mentor of Henry Inman.

Family

Hack died at his home in

Semaphore Semaphore (; ) is the use of an apparatus to create a visual signal transmitted over distance. A semaphore can be performed with devices including: fire, lights, flags, sunlight, and moving arms. Semaphores can be used for telegraphy when arra ...

on 4 October 1884 (his wife had died on 20 July 1881). Together they produced at least twelve children, including eight sons and four daughters. The first six were born in England. *William Hack (1828 – 20 April 1900) married Emma Harding (1846-1929), was a farmer and grazier at Stewart's Range near Naracoorte. *Edward Hack (1829 – 25 September 1904) was a carter, surveyor, storekeeper and Primitive Methodist local preacher. *Annie Mary Hack (1830 – 17 February 1839) *Louisa Hack (1831 – 7 August 1865) married Patrick James Tod (died 30 May 1855) on 20 January 1849; married Kingston Linden, of

Plymouth Plymouth () is a port city and unitary authority in South West England. It is located on the south coast of Devon, approximately south-west of Exeter and south-west of London. It is bordered by Cornwall to the west and south-west. Plymouth ...

, England. *Alfred Hack (1833 – 7 June 1908) auctioneer and commission agent, married Susan Pengilly on 25 October 1870 :*Frederick Theodore "Fred T." Hack (24 August 1877 – 10 April 1939) cricketer, motor body builder; his business at 400 King William Street was taken over by

Holden Holden, formerly known as General Motors-Holden, was an Australian subsidiary company of General Motors. It was an Australian automobile manufacturer, importer, and exporter which sold cars under its own marque in Australia. In its last thre ...

's ::*Alfred Thomas "Alf" Hack (12 June 1905 – 4 February 1933) cricketer, known as wicket keeper ::*Norman Reginald Hack (25 February 1907 – 13 October 1971) L.H. batsman *Bedford Hack (10 August 1835 – 26 April 1912) worked in the Surveyor-General's Department and was manager of the Sewerage Farm."Hack, John Barton (1805–1884)", ''Australian Dictionary of Biography''. *Emily Margaret Hack (1837 – 7 January 1873) *

MHA (17 November 1840 – 27 December 1902) married Elvira Louisa Ansell (c. 1842 – 7 October 1890) on 17 November 1864. See his entry for family details. *Charles Hack (30 May 1842 – 22 April 1915) married Anne Brooks Meyrick (1844 – 24 October 1929) on 27 December 1866. He was a tenor in several important choirs. :* Gulielma "Guli" Hack (17 October 1867 – 2 August 1951) married William Magarey on 5 March 1910. She was a noted singer and pianist,

Elder Overseas Scholarship The Elder Overseas Scholarship, sometimes referred to as the Elder Travelling Scholarship, is a triennial award to a South Australian (classical) musician, selected by competition from eligible candidates, to study at the Royal College of Music, Lon ...

winner, taught at the Elder Conservatorium. :*Ethel May Hack (19 July 1869 – 4 September 1947) married Bruce Malcolm (January 1869 – 2 May 1941) on 9 January 1902. She was a contralto and piano accompanist. Malcolm was born in Gawler, they ran Avondale station, Pittsworth, Queensland, then Coonabarabran, later of 2 Erith Street

Mosman, New South Wales Mosman is a suburb on the Lower North Shore region of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Mosman is located 8 kilometres north-east of the Sydney central business district and is the administrative centre for the local governm ...

. :As "The Misses Hack" they lived at 58 South Terrace, Adelaide, teaching languages and music to small children at Miller Street, North Unley 1900–1902, then 1903–1906 at Rose Terrace,

Wayville Wayville is an inner-southern suburb of Adelaide in the City of Unley. It is most notable for hosting of the Royal Adelaide Show at the Royal Adelaide Showgrounds, Adelaide Showgrounds. The suburb is bordered to the north by Adelaide's South Par ...

. They had two children: Joy and Bruce. :*Louisa Emily Hack (1872–1946) :*(Charles) Gerald Hack (1874–1936) married Dorothy Langridge on 16 February 1916. :*Leonard Hack (1876 – 10 July 1912) married Hilda Kyffin Thomas (2 April 1878 – 1947) on 28 July 1906. Hilda was a daughter of

Robert Kyffin Thomas Sir Robert Kyffin Thomas (19 August 1851 – 13 June 1910) was a South Australian newspaper proprietor. Sir Robert was born at Nailsworth, South Australia, the son of William Kyffin Thomas, proprietor of the ''South Australian Register''. T ...

. :*Winifred B. B. E. Hack (1879–1968) married Arthur Bellendes Skottowe ( –1923) in 1903 :*Noel Meyrick Hack (1881–1957) married Guelda Lillian Muecke (1889–1963) in 1910. She was a granddaughter of H. C. E. Muecke. :*Dulcie Barton Hack (1886–1963) married Percy William Hardie Marshall (1883–1944) in 1914. Percy was a son of Rundle Street merchant James Marshall. :*Lionel Watson Hack (1889–1921) married Adela Gwen Hill (1891–1970) in 1916 *Francis "Frank" Hack (4 December 1843 – 17 August 1903) *George Hack (27 May 1845 – ) married Elizabeth Ann Johns ( –1948) in 1869 *Jessie Maria Hack (20 Jul 1848 – 31 Mar 1867) At least three of his sons received tuition at J. L. Young's Adelaide Educational Institution: between December 1854 and December 1857, Theodore, Charles and Frank figured prominently at prizegivings, as did their cousin Wilton (1843–1923).Adelaide Educational Institution
''South Australian Register'' 14 June 1856 p.4 accessed 26 September 2011

Sources

* * G. C. Morphett, ''John Barton Hack: A Quaker Pioneer'' (Adel, 1943)
A Chequered Career – Reminiscences of a Pioneer Outline
''South Australian Register'' 22 April 1884 p. 6 accessed 7 September 2011
Remarkably, this autobiographical series contains no reference to any involvement with the Quaker church.
A Chequered Career – Reminiscences of a Pioneer I
''South Australian Register'' 22 April 1884 p. 6 accessed 7 September 2011
A Chequered Career – Reminiscences of a Pioneer II
''South Australian Register'' 23 April 1884 p. 6 accessed 6 September 2011
A Chequered Career – Reminiscences of a Pioneer III
''South Australian Register'' 28 April 1884 p. 7 accessed 7 September 2011
Early Settlement in South Australia No. 1
''South Australian Register'' 3 July 1884 p. 6 accessed 7 September 2011
Early Settlement in South Australia No. 2
''South Australian Register'' 12 July 1884 Supplement p. 1 accessed 7 September 2011
Early Settlement in South Australia No. 3
''South Australian Register'' 19 July 1884 Supplement p. 2 accessed 7 September 2011
Early Settlement in South Australia No. 4
''South Australian Register'' 29 July 1884 p. 7 accessed 7 September 2011
Early Settlement in South Australia No. 5
''South Australian Register'' 9 August 1884 Supplement p. 1 accessed 7 September 2011

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hack, John Barton 1805 births 1884 deaths People from Chichester English emigrants to Australia Settlers of South Australia English Quakers Australian Quakers Converts to Methodism