Thomas Bannister (1799–1874) was a

soldier A soldier is a person who is a member of an army. A soldier can be a Conscription, conscripted or volunteer Enlisted rank, enlisted person, a non-commissioned officer, a warrant officer, or an Officer (armed forces), officer. Etymology The wo ...

and

explorer Exploration is the process of exploring, an activity which has some Expectation (epistemic), expectation of Discovery (observation), discovery. Organised exploration is largely a human activity, but exploratory activity is common to most organis ...

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 ...

. He was born in

Steyning Steyning ( ) is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Horsham District, Horsham district of West Sussex, England. It is located at the north end of the River Adur gap in the South Downs, north of the coastal town of Shoreha ...

Sussex Sussex (Help:IPA/English, /ˈsʌsɪks/; from the Old English ''Sūþseaxe''; lit. 'South Saxons'; 'Sussex') is an area within South East England that was historically a kingdom of Sussex, kingdom and, later, a Historic counties of England, ...

in 1799, and arrived in Western Australia in 1829, age 30, with the rank of Captain aboard the ''Atwick'' with 3 servants from London, England. Upon arriving in

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

he accompanied

Thomas Braidwood Wilson Thomas Braidwood Wilson FRGS (bapt. 29 April 1792 – 11 November 1843) was an Australian surgeon and explorer. He was baptised in Kirknewton, West Lothian, Kirknewton, West Lothian, Scotland, the son of James, and Catherine Boak. Sea voyages ...

to select land for settlement along the

Canning River The Canning River ( or ) is a major tributary of the Swan River in the South West Land Division of Western Australia. It is home to much wildlife including dolphins, pelicans, swans and many other bird species. Source and route With headwate ...

. Later the same year he explored the base of the

Darling Range The Darling Scarp (), also referred to as the Darling Range or Darling Ranges, is a low escarpment running north–south to the east of the Swan Coastal Plain and Perth, Western Australia. The escarpment extends generally north of Bindoon, West ...

and then lead an expedition from

Perth Perth () is the list of Australian capital cities, capital city of Western Australia. It is the list of cities in Australia by population, fourth-most-populous city in Australia, with a population of over 2.3 million within Greater Perth . The ...

to Albany accepting land grants along the way. Bannister came to Forth River and Frankland River in 1831. Leaving the

colony A colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule, which rules the territory and its indigenous peoples separated from the foreign rulers, the colonizer, and their ''metropole'' (or "mother country"). This separated rule was often orga ...

in 1835 (renting his Canning land to William Nairn), and went to

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

where he became a founding member of the Port Philip Association. He is the brother of

Saxe Bannister Saxe Bannister (1790 – 16 September 1877) was a writer and the first Attorney-General of New South Wales, Australia. Early life and education Bannister was born in Steyning, Sussex, son of John Bannister. He matriculated at The Queen's Colleg ...

, the first

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...

New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...

. Thomas Bannister died in 1874. The

Bannister River Bannister River is a river in the South West region of Western Australia. The river rises to the east of North Bannister and flows in a southerly direction discharging into the Hotham River near Boddington. The river was named after Capt ...

, the town of North Bannister, and

Bannister Street, Fremantle Bannister Street is a street in Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia located at the mouth of the Swan River (Western Australia), Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour ser ...

, are all named after him.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bannister, Thomas English explorers People from Steyning 1799 births 1874 deaths