William Cox (pioneer)

William Cox ( born December 19, 1764 Wimborne Minster, Dorset, England; † March 15, 1837 Windsor, Australia) was a soldier and Australian pioneer who built the first road across the Blue Mountains from Sydney to Bathurst.

Life

Cox attended Queen Elizabeth's Grammar School in Wimbrone Minster and lived in Devizes, Wiltshire later. He married Rebecca Upjohn in 1789.

Cox served in the military in England until August 24, 1799 the ship Minerva with his wife and four sons to New South Wales, Australia, emigrated. On the ship there were 160 convicts, including Joseph Holt and Henry Fulton, the political prisoners from Ireland were. Cox sat down one on the ship for more humanity and the Irish rebel Holt wrote in his memoirs: " the ship what the healthiest and best regulated Which had ever reached the colony" ( the ship was the best in terms of health rules and the organization, which has ever reached the colony). The ship arrived in Sydney on January 11, 1800. Cox received 0.4 km ² of farmland and made Holt to his farm manager.

Cox was appointed lieutenant of the New South Wales Corps and used as a paymaster. He was accused of irregularities in the management of funds of the military, so he was recalled to England in 1807. He was there, however, never brought before a court. After the matter had been settled, he was appointed captain and had to watch Irish political prisoners. Since he was not present in Australia during the Rum Rebellion, his attitude to William Bligh remained unclear. His wife and his son voted for Bligh.

Road construction

When Cox came back to Australia in 1811, he was appointed the first administrators of Hawkesbury, where he was also responsible for the construction of government buildings. After Gregory Blaxland, William Lawson and William Charles Wentworth found its way through the Blue Mountains had ( Blaxland expedition ), Governor Lachlan Macquarie commissioned Cox to build the 163 km long and 3.7 meters wide road between Sydney and Bathurst. For this order, 30 it convicts and eight military guards were provided and given a period of three years. He promised the convicts with good work and loyalty freedom and a small piece of land. The road was made in heavy manual work. Cox presented the road during the period of July 18, 1814 to January 14, 1815 ready. Macquarie used the new route in April 1815 on his way to Bathurst. For the prematurely finished road Cox was awarded in recognition of 8.1 km ² farmland near Bathurst.

End of life

The first wife of Cox died in 1819; with her he had five sons. In 1821 he married Anna Blachford, with whom he had three sons and a daughter. He died in 1837 and was buried in the grave next to his first wife at St Matthew 's Cathedral of Windsor in Australia. A son from his first marriage founded this church a window.