John Alexander Hunter (30 May 1887 – 29 March 1963) was a

white hunter White hunter is a literary term used for professional big game hunters of European descent, from all over the world, who plied their trade in Africa, especially during the first half of the 20th century. The activity continues in the dozen Afri ...

in Africa from the early 1900s through the 1950s who led many notable

safari A safari (; originally ) is an overland journey to observe wildlife, wild animals, especially in East Africa. The so-called big five game, "Big Five" game animals of Africa – lion, African leopard, leopard, rhinoceros, African elephant, elep ...

Biography

John Alexander Hunter was born on 30 May 1887 near Shearington, Dumfries-shire, Scotland. He moved permanently to British East Africa in 1908, where he later led the Livermore expedition, with the aid of A.P.de K.Fourie, that opened up the

Ngorongoro Crater Ngorongoro Conservation Area (, ) is a protected area and a UNESCO World Heritage Site located in Ngorongoro District, west of Arusha City in Arusha Region, within the Crater Highlands geological area of northeastern Tanzania. The area is name ...

to European hunters. He held several world records for big game at various times, and killed over 1,000 rhinos in Kenya, most of them in the Makueni hunting ground, which the Government needed to get rid of, in order to give these lands for re-settlement of the

Kamba people The Kamba or Akamba (sometimes called Wakamba) people are Bantu peoples ethnic group who predominantly live in Kenya stretching from Nairobi to Tsavo and northwards to Embu, Kenya, Embu, in the southern part of the Eastern Province, Kenya, f ...

. Besides safaris and other control operations for the Kenya Game Department, in Makueni Hunter killed 996 alone, from 26 August 1944 to 31 October 1946. It turned out that those lands were useless for human settlement. In later years, he became concerned about the possible extinction of the wildlife he had so assiduously hunted, and spoke in favour of conservation. His writings were notable for betraying his colonialist attitude, although his writings similarly betrayed a genuine respect and affection for the locales and peoples that he interacted with. In 1918 he married Hilda Bunbury. They had 6 children, Doreen, Sheila, Lesley, Gordon, Dennis and David. His grandson Alex Hunter inherited his way of life and is a safari guide in Kenya. He was a friend and contemporary of

Denys Finch Hatton Denys George Finch-Hatton MC (24 April 1887 – 14 May 1931) was a British aristocratic big-game hunter and the lover of Baroness Karen von Blixen (also known by her pen name, Isak Dinesen), a Danish noblewoman who wrote about him in her aut ...

, who was portrayed by

Robert Redford Charles Robert Redford Jr. (born August 18, 1936) is an American actor and filmmaker. He has received numerous accolades such as an Academy Award, a BAFTA Award, and two Golden Globe Awards, as well as the Cecil B. DeMille Award in 1994, the ...

in the movie ''

Out of Africa ''Out of Africa'' is a memoir by the Danish people, Danish author Karen Blixen. The book, first published in 1937, recounts events of the eighteen years when Blixen made her home in Kenya, then called East Africa Protectorate, British East Africa ...

''. In his published writings Hunter wrote of his friend and fellow professional hunter, and the tragic circumstances of Hatton's death. In 1958 he built the Hunters' Lodge hotel in

Makindu Makindu is a town in Makueni County, Kenya. Location The town is located on the Nairobi-Mombasa Highway, in Makueni County, in southeastern Kenya on the map, close to the International border with the Tanzania. This location lies approximately ...

, Kenya where he died in 1963.

Books

; ''White Hunter'' (1938) Published by Seeley, Service & Co. Ltd. of London in 1938. Specifically about his safaris before World War II. The original 1938 edition is a scarce collectors item. Also a later reprint of 1,000 limited editions by Safari Press, 1986. The book was the basis for the ''

White Hunter White hunter is a literary term used for professional big game hunters of European descent, from all over the world, who plied their trade in Africa, especially during the first half of the 20th century. The activity continues in the dozen Afri ...

'' British television series of 1957. ; ''Hunter'' (1952) Published by Hamish Hamilton in the United Kingdom in 1952. An autobiography recounting 40 years as a white hunter in British East Africa. Including his move from Scotland to Africa as a young man, hunting rogue elephants, working with Masai spear man against lions, exploring the hidden Isle of Fumve, leading a safari across the Serengeti and more. ; ''African Hunter'' (1954) Published by Hamish Hamilton, in the United Kingdom in 1954. A condensed version, for younger readers, of J.A. Hunter's autobiography, ''Hunter'' (1952). ; ''African Bush Adventures'' (1954) Also known as ''Tales of the African Frontier''. With Daniel P. Mannix, published by Hamish Hamilton in the United Kingdom in 1954. Also published under the title ''Tales of the African Frontier'' (Harper & Brothers, USA 1954) and the basis for the 1959 movie ''Killers of Kilimanjaro''. J.A. Hunter and Daniel P. Mannix re-tell the true life stories of some of Africa's early settlers, slavers, ivory hunters, missionaries, traders and police officers.J. A. Hunter, ''African Bush Adventures'' (Hamish Hamilton, 1954). Dust jacket text. ; ''Hunter's Tracks'' (1957) Assisted by Alan Wykes. Published by Hamish Hamilton of London in 1957. Chronicling J.A. Hunter's role in the hunt and capture of an ivory smuggler over 11 chapters, interspersed with reminisces about memorable hunts and characters, including a close call with crocodiles, a grand safari with a

Maharajah Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a prince. However, in late ancient India ...

, and a hand-to-hand fight with a lion.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hunter, J. A. 1887 births 1963 deaths Scottish hunters People from Dumfries and Galloway 20th-century Scottish autobiographers Elephant hunters

Biography

Books

See also

References