Peter Barrow
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Peter Barrow (30 July 1813 – 6 October 1899) was a son of
Sir John Barrow, 1st Baronet Sir John Barrow, 1st Baronet, (19 June 1764 – 23 November 1848) was an English geographer, linguist, writer and civil servant best known for serving as the Second Secretary to the Admiralty from 1804 until 1845. Early life Barrow was ...
, and an early settler in the colony of
Western Australia Western Australia (WA) is the westernmost state of Australia. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east, and South Australia to the south-east. Western Aust ...
, becoming a magistrate and Guardian of Aborigines, Anglican priest and school teacher in
York, Western Australia York is the oldest inland town in Western Australia, situated on the Avon River, east of Perth in the Wheatbelt, on Ballardong Nyoongar land,King, A and Parker, E: York, Western Australia's first inland town, Parker Print, 2003 p.3. and is ...
. He left the colony after two years and became a British consul.


In Western Australia

Barrow was sent from England to be a
Protector of Aborigines The Australian colonies in the nineteenth century created offices involved in managing the affairs of Indigenous people in their jurisdictions. The role of Protector of Aborigines was first established in South Australia in 1836. The role beca ...
. He arrived in Western Australia on 2 January 1840 on ''Westmoreland'', and was very quickly appointed as a magistrate and as a Guardian of Aborigines in
York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...
.


York

Barrow was fortunate to secure the close friendship of the
resident magistrate A resident magistrate is a title for magistrates used in certain parts of the world, that were, or are, governed by the British. Sometimes abbreviated as RM, it refers to suitably qualified personnel—notably well versed in the law—brought int ...
,
Rivett Henry Bland Rivett (or Revett) Henry Bland (2 February 1811 – 18 February 1894) was an early settler and a government administrator in colonial Australia. Bland was the son of Thomas Bland and Emma Revett,Daniele, L, Australian Dictionary of Biography an ...
,J. E. Deacon: "Peter Barrow—A York Personality". ''West Australian''. 22 March 1947, p. 4.i and bought a property from him for 10 pounds, on which he built a "small house". Barrow was involved in the formation of the York Agricultural Society on 3 August 1840, becoming its first secretary and treasurer. However, Barrow came under the displeasure of certain of the members so that he was forced to resign before the first show was held. He arranged the construction of a Church (St John’s) which could accommodate 100 people, and Barrow read church services; on one occasion he is reported to have delivered a "capital sermon".


Guardian of Aborigines

As Guardian of Aborigines, Barrow at first found his duties difficult; he reported in June 1840: Nine months later, on 31 March 1841, Barrow reported : To quote McLaren and Cooper: Barrow published an advertisement about the cow: "A report having gone abroad that a cow had been speared, killed and eaten by natives in the neighbourhood of Addington, I beg leave, through the public press, to contradict the report, inasmuch as the same cow is now alive and well at Addington Farm. I am informed however that suspicions are entertained that a spear was thrown at it." A year before Barrow's arrival at York, two Aboriginal people had been hanged near York at the site of where they had murdered Sarah Cook and her baby daughter. In 1841, their bodies were still hanging at the site and Barrow commented: "The execution of the two natives, Barrabong and Doojeep, for the murder of Mrs Cook, appears to have had the most beneficial effect: their bodies are still hanging in chains, a terror to evil doers." In Barrow's June 1841 report as Protector of Aborigines, he reported that in the northern and southern extremes of his territory, the Aboriginal tribes were not so peaceably disposed as those who are more directly in the heart of the settlement. He also refers to having "native constables". He visited Albany during the year in his capacity as Protector of Aborigines.


School

Barrow offered to teach gratuitously any children that were sent to him, but he only had two students, the families in the York district being so spread out, with most children being taught by their parents or a tutor.John E Deacon: A Survey of the Historical Development of the Avon Valley with Particular Reference to York, Western Australia During the Years 1830–1850, UWA, 1948. He also gave instruction to Aboriginal children and taught four of them the alphabet, including
Cowits Cowits was Western Australia's first Aboriginal policeman, and was a member of a number of early exploratory expeditions. Cowits and his brother, Souper Cowits came from the York area. He was born around 1832. He had a brother named Souper. ...
. In April 1841, the "indefatigable" Barrow devised an ambitious plan to use his five room home as an international school, named Wallingford Classical and Mathematical Academy, teaching "the classics, mathematics, geography, polite literature and the rudiments of the Eastern languages". He published an advertisement aimed at "educating the rising generations of Western Australians" and also courting the hope of inducing families resident in India to send their children there, instead of to England. Fees were £100 a year. In the advertisement, he named as instructors
John Burdett Wittenoom John Burdett Wittenoom (24 October 1788 – 23 January 1855) was a colonial clergyman who was the second Anglican clergyman to perform religious services in the Swan River Colony, Australia, soon after its establishment in 1829. Biography ...
, Reverend Mears,
Henry Maxwell Lefroy Henry Maxwell Lefroy (August 1818 – 18 July 1879) was a prominent explorer of the Mid West and Goldfields-Esperance regions of Western Australia. He was the son of Rev. John Henry George Lefroy, the rector of Compton and Ashe, who died when ...
and himself, and Viveash as medical officer. In another newspaper of the same date, Barrow published an advertisement saying "in consequence of unforeseen obstacles, Wallingford Academy will not be opened until further notice." Barrow then advertised his house to let for three to seven years. On 3 September 1841, Barrow gave notice that he intended to leave the colony, and he sold his home to Bland for 200 pounds. He left the colony on 7 October, bound for Singapore.


Later life

Barrow became British vice-consul of
Caen Caen (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune inland from the northwestern coast of France. It is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Departments of France, department of Calvados (department), Calvados. The city proper has 105,512 inha ...
, then of
Rabat Rabat (, also , ; ) is the Capital (political), capital city of Morocco and the List of cities in Morocco, country's seventh-largest city with an urban population of approximately 580,000 (2014) and a metropolitan population of over 1.2 million. ...
and Sallee in
Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...
, then in 1862 of
Nantes Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city in the Loire-Atlantique department of France on the Loire, from the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. The city is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, sixth largest in France, with a pop ...
, then from 1866 to 1879 of
Kerch Kerch, also known as Keriç or Kerich, is a city of regional significance on the Kerch Peninsula in the east of Crimea. It has a population of Founded 2,600 years ago as the Colonies in antiquity#Greek colonies, ancient Greek colony Pantik ...
. He died childless in
Ouistreham Ouistreham () is a commune in the Calvados department in Normandy region in northwestern France. Ouistreham is a small port with fishing boats, leisure craft and a ferry harbour. It serves as the port of the city of Caen. The town borders t ...
, France on 6 October 1899.Helen Tredoux family tree on Ancestry.com.


Notes


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Barrow, Peter 1813 births Settlers of Western Australia 1899 deaths English emigrants to Australia