William Chopin (1827 – 30 October 1900) was a

convict A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convict ...

transported ''Transported'' is an Australian convict melodrama film directed by W. J. Lincoln. It is considered a lost film. Plot In England, Jessie Grey is about to marry Leonard Lincoln but the evil Harold Hawk tries to force her to marry him and she w ...

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. After gaining his

Ticket of leave A ticket of leave was a document of parole issued to convicts who had shown they could now be trusted with some freedoms. Originally the ticket was issued in Britain and later adapted by the United States, Canada, and Ireland. Jurisdictions ...

he worked as a

chemist A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...

and later as a provider illicit

abortions Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pregnan ...

. Nothing is known of William Chopin's early life, but in 1865 he was a widower with one child, and was working as a clerk. On 4 December 1865 both he and his brother

Alfred Alfred may refer to: Arts and entertainment *''Alfred J. Kwak'', Dutch-German-Japanese anime television series * ''Alfred'' (Arne opera), a 1740 masque by Thomas Arne * ''Alfred'' (Dvořák), an 1870 opera by Antonín Dvořák *"Alfred (Interlu ...

were convicted in the

Manchester Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...

courts and sentenced to be transported. William Chopin was convicted of uttering forged notes, and received a sentence of twenty years. His brother was convicted of receiving stolen goods, and was sentenced to ten years. The two brothers were transported to Western Australia on board the '' Norwood'', which arrived at

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

in July 1867. For his first seven years in Western Australia, Chopin worked in the prison hospitals at Fremantle and later Albany, dispensing medicine. According to Stevenson (1983), these seven years would have been equivalent to an

apprenticeship Apprenticeship is a system for training a new generation of practitioners of a Tradesman, trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study (classroom work and reading). Apprenticeships can also enable practitioners ...

pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it links heal ...

. Chopin received his

ticket of leave A ticket of leave was a document of parole issued to convicts who had shown they could now be trusted with some freedoms. Originally the ticket was issued in Britain and later adapted by the United States, Canada, and Ireland. Jurisdictions ...

on 7 December 1874, and the following month was appointed a dispenser of medicine at the Colonial Hospital. In March he was given a pay rise and extra clerical duties, but by the end of the year he had resigned the position. For a short time he worked in his brother's shop, but by 1876 he was advertising himself as a

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 ...

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

. In 1878, Chopin was appointed government school-teacher at Mourambine near

Beverley Beverley is a market town, market and minster (church), minster town and a civil parishes in England, civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England, of which it is the county town. The town centre is located south-east of York's centre ...

. School teaching was one of the few reputable occupations that were open to convicts in Western Australia, as the low pay and poor conditions were not attractive to the very small number of well-educated settlers in the colony. In accepting the appointment, Chopin became one of only 39

ex-convict school teachers in Western Australia Following Western Australia's convict era, 37 ex-convicts were appointed school teachers in the colony. The appointment of such a large number of ex-convicts to what was considered a respectable government position was highly unusual for a pena ...

. He remained in the position until 1883. In 1884, Chopin started a business as a chemist at

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. His business was reasonably successful, and he became a respectable member of the York community. He received his conditional pardon in April 1886, and the following month was elected

treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury o ...

of the York Mechanics' Institute. In July, however, he was arrested for "being in Avon Terrace when supposed to be of unsound mind without proper care and control". The charges were later dismissed. From 1887, Chopin's chemist business gradually declined due to increasing competition with general stores and other chemists. He offset this, however, by becoming provider of illicit

. Between 1892 and 1894 he was arrested three times on charges of attempting to procure abortions. In the first two cases he was acquitted, but in the third case he was found guilty. Sentenced to ten years of penal servitude, he was employed as an orderly at the Invalid Depot. He received a ticket of leave in 1898, and died in Fremantle Prison Hospital on 30 October 1900.

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chopin, William 1827 births 1900 deaths Convicts transported to Western Australia Settlers of Western Australia