Peter Dowding Prankerd (1819 – 17 December 1902) was an English businessman who made a fortune in Colonial South Australia real estate.

History

Prankerd was born in

Langport Langport is a small town and civil parish in Somerset, England, west of Somerton in the South Somerset district. The parish, which covers only part of the town, has a population of 1,081. Langport is contiguous with Huish Episcopi, a separate ...

, a son of John Prankerd, solicitor, and his wife Mary (died 22 June 1866). In 1839 he emigrated to Australia, and operated for a time as a stock agent at

Kangaroo Point, Queensland Kangaroo Point is an inner southern suburb in the City of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. In the , Kangaroo Point had a population of 8,063 people. The suburb features two prominent attractions, the Story Bridge and Kangaroo Point Cliffs. At ...

. By 1847 he was in Adelaide, and soon was in partnership with George Rolfe, dissolved May 1851. Prankerd left for England some time around 1849; returned in March 1850 aboard ''Samuel Boddington'' From 1853 he regularly attended Government land sales, purchasing newly released country land to be leased by prospective farmers. Some he subdivided, and several townships in South Australia are the product of his enterprise. In association with Robert Stuckey, Prankerd laid out a township in the Adelaide Hills which he named Stirling, in honor of his friend Edward Stirling, MLC. It was for a time called Stirling East to distinguish it from Stirling North in the Mid-North. He made a gift of land for a local school. In 1856 Prankerd, Stuckey and

John Bentham Neales John Bentham Neales (13 June 1806 – 31 July 1873), frequently referred to as "J. Bentham Neales" or "Bentham Neales", was a businessman and politician in the early days of South Australia, by some regarded as the "Father of Mining in South Aust ...

formed a partnership to develop "New Melrose" (now simply Melrose) near

Mount Remarkable Mount Remarkable is a mountain in South Australia located in the Flinders Ranges about north of the centre of the capital city of Adelaide and immediately north-west of the town of Melrose, which was once named Mount Remarkable itself, and wh ...

. In 1861 Prankerd purchased sections 372, 373 and 374, Hundred of MacDonnell, 8km north of

Port MacDonnell Port MacDonnell, originally known as ''Ngaranga''Christina Smith, The Booandik Tribe of South Australian Aborigines: A Sketch of Their Habits, Customs, Legends, and Language', Spiller, 1880 is the southernmost town in South Australia. The smal ...

, and the following year laid out the township of "Allendale", later known as Allendale East. He donated land nearby on Section 247 for a Wesleyan Methodist chapel, named Kingsley Chapel. In April 1864 he was elected a governor of

St. Peter's College St, St. or Saint Peter's College may refer to: Places of education sorted by location Australia *St Peter's Catholic College, Tuggerah, New South Wales * St Peter's College, Adelaide, South Australia * St Peters Lutheran College, Brisbane, Queensl ...

, where at least one of his sons was a student. As a director and trustee of Moonta Mines, he was involved in the business side of the copper mining and smelting operations at Moonta and Wallaroo. A major facility at the mine, the Prankerd Engine, used for crushing and winding, was named for him. Its boiler exploded spectacularly in 1875. He visited England aboard SS ''Rangatira''in September 1870, returning January 1872 aboard SS ''Gothenburg'', one of her last voyages before the tragic shipwreck. Mentions of his involvement with the Cape Yorke Eclipse Expedition may have mistaken him for someone of a similar name. The Prankerds left for England aboard SS ''South Australian'' on 27 December 1872, after making a gift to the people of Moonta of Block 259 in that town, adjacent the Baptist chapel, and another block to the residents of Langport, his subdivision on Moonta Bay. He later made gifts of £300 to the Deaf and Dumb Asylum. and £500 towards the proposed University of Adelaide. He bought a large house "The Knoll" in

Sneyd Park Sneyd Park is a suburb of Bristol, England, lying on the western fringe of Clifton Down, adjacent to the Avon Gorge and the Sea Walls observation point. It is part of the Stoke Bishop district. Home to many millionaires, Sneyd Park was originally ...

, Bristol. His interest in South Australian real estate continued, through his agent Frederick Wright.

Named for Prankerd

There is a Prankerd Street in Moonta Bay township, and nearby are Percy, Herbert, Lucy and Edith streets. He founded the Prankerd Scholarship at

Family

Prankerd married Lucy Amelia Wright (c. 1821 – 16 August 1893) on 8 March 1856. She was the eldest daughter of Stephen Amand Wright and sister of architect Edmund Wright. Their family included: *Percy John Prankerd (30 August 1859 – 24 November 1908), a solicitor, died in Tunbridge Wells *Herbert Peter Prankerd (21 September 1861 – ) *Edith Lucy Mary Prankerd (4 March 1864 – ) They had a residence "Athelney", Hackney Road, Hackney, built 1858, later owned by

Herbert Bristow Hughes Herbert Bristow Hughes (c. 1821 – 19 May 1892), generally referred to as "H. B. Hughes", was a pioneer pastoralist in the colony of South Australia. History Hughes was born in England, a younger brother of Timothy Bristow Hughes, a leading co ...

then incorporated into St. Peter's College.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prankerd, Peter 1819 births 1902 deaths Australian real estate agents Australian mining businesspeople 19th-century Australian businesspeople