Cornthwaite John Hector (6 May 1835 – 6 January 1898) was the founder of

Melbourne, Florida Melbourne ( ) is a city in Brevard County, Florida, United States. It is located southeast of Orlando, Florida, Orlando along Florida's Space Coast, named because of the region's proximity to Cape Canaveral and the Kennedy Space Center. The city ...

, and its first postmaster.

Early life and family

Cornthwaite John Hector was born 6 May 1835, in

Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania during the European exploration of Australia, European exploration and colonisation of Australia in the 19th century. The Aboriginal Tasmanians, Aboriginal-inhabited island wa ...

(now

Tasmania Tasmania (; palawa kani: ''Lutruwita'') is an island States and territories of Australia, state of Australia. It is located to the south of the Mainland Australia, Australian mainland, and is separated from it by the Bass Strait. The sta ...

), though his application to start a post office lists his birthplace as

Liverpool Liverpool is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. It is situated on the eastern side of the River Mersey, Mersey Estuary, near the Irish Sea, north-west of London. With a population ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

. He was the son of Cornthwaite Hector and Elizabeth Budd. Cornthwaite and Elizabeth had emigrated from

Portsmouth Portsmouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. Most of Portsmouth is located on Portsea Island, off the south coast of England in the Solent, making Portsmouth the only city in En ...

to the British

penal colony A penal colony or exile colony is a settlement used to exile prisoners and separate them from the general population by placing them in a remote location, often an island or distant colonial territory. Although the term can be used to refer ...

of Van Diemen's Land, the southernmost of the Australian colonies, where they had been given a grant of land by the British government. They had arrived at

Hobart Hobart ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the island state of Tasmania, Australia. Located in Tasmania's south-east on the estuary of the River Derwent, it is the southernmost capital city in Australia. Despite containing nearly hal ...

on the ship ''Lang'' on Tuesday 23 December 1828. By 1840 the family had moved to

Kororāreka Russell () is a town in the Bay of Islands, in New Zealand's far north. It was the first permanent European settlement and seaport in New Zealand. History Māori settlement Before the arrival of the Europeans, the area now known as Russ ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

. At ten years of age, Hector was present at the

Battle of Kororāreka The Battle of Kororāreka, or the Burning of Kororāreka, on 11 March 1845, was an engagement of the Flagstaff War in New Zealand. Following the establishment of British control of the islands, war broke out with a small group of the native popu ...

. He became notable for his "gallant conduct" at that battle for "bringing up ammunition from the stockade during the heaviest fire", according to a newspaper report of the time. Hector, along with his brother, George Nelson Hector, worked for Bishop George Augustus Selwyn, (the first Bishop of New Zealand) on board various vessels he used to travel among the islands of the

Pacific Ocean The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five Borders of the oceans, oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean, or, depending on the definition, to Antarctica in the south, and is ...

. The Maori Wars prompted many English people to leave New Zealand and the Hector family, with the exception of George Nelson Hector, moved to Australia. Hector's mother, Elizabeth, died at Victoria Street,

Surry Hills Surry Hills is an Eastern Suburbs (Sydney), inner-east suburb of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Surry Hills is immediately south-east of the Sydney central business district in the Local government in Australia, local gover ...

Sydney Sydney is the capital city of the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales and the List of cities in Australia by population, most populous city in Australia. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Syd ...

, New South Wales, on Wednesday 22 September 1847, aged 42.

Hector in America

Hector came to America in or before 1878. At the time, Melbourne was known as Crane Creek. Hector became the first postmaster and operated a general store. He was influential in the naming of the city of Melbourne, although there are several versions of the story. Mrs. R.W. Goode is credited with suggesting the name to honor Hector, although he is said to have favored a different name. Straws representing various names were drawn by Grace Goode, and the "Melbourne" straw was the one drawn. Hector was confirmed at Holy Trinity Episcopal Church on 21 April 1887, at the age of 51. He married Ida M. Gard on 10 October 1895, at Holy Trinity United. Hector died at

Crescent City, Florida Crescent City is a city in Putnam County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 Census, its population was 1,654, up from 1,577 at the 2010 census. The city is located on two lakes and is part of the Palatka, Florida Micropolitan Statistical ...

, on 6 January 1898, and was buried at the Melbourne Cemetery.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hector, Cornthwaite John 1835 births 1898 deaths Immigrants to the United States Flagstaff War American city founders Florida postmasters Florida pioneers People from Melbourne, Florida