Alfred Bussell
Encyclopedia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
Alfred Bussell was born at Portsea
Portsea
Portsea is an area of the English city of Portsmouth, located on Portsea Island, within the ceremonial county of Hampshire.The area was originally known as the Common and lay between the town of Portsmouth and the nearby Dockyard. The Common started to be developed at the end of the seventeenth...
, Hampshire
Hampshire
Hampshire is a county on the southern coast of England in the United Kingdom. The county town of Hampshire is Winchester, a historic cathedral city that was once the capital of England. Hampshire is notable for housing the original birthplaces of the Royal Navy, British Army, and Royal Air Force...
in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
on 21 June 1816. He was educated at Winchester College in England, but after the death of his father the family decided to emigrate to Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. Alfred Bussell and three of his brothers sailed for Western Australia on board the Warrior in March 1830, with the rest of the Bussell family
Bussell family
The Bussell family were a family of early settlers in colonial Western Australia. Four members of the Bussell family emigrated from England to Western Australia in 1831, with more members following in the next few years...
to follow once the brothers were established. He was just thirteen years old at the time.
On arriving at the Swan River Colony
Swan River Colony
The Swan River Colony was a British settlement established in 1829 on the Swan River, in Western Australia. The name was a pars pro toto for Western Australia. In 1832, the colony was officially renamed Western Australia, when the colony's founding Lieutenant-Governor, Captain James Stirling,...
, the Bussells were advised to start a new sub-colony at Augusta
Augusta, Western Australia
Augusta is a town on the south-west coast of Western Australia, where the Blackwood River emerges into Flinders Bay. It is the nearest town to Cape Leeuwin, on the farthest south-west corner of the Australian continent. In the 2001 census it had a population of 1,694; by 2006 the population of...
. For four years the brothers tried unsuccessfully to establish a farm, initially at Augusta and then further up the Blackwood River
Blackwood River
The Blackwood River is a major river and catchment in the South West of Western Australia.The river begins at the junction of Arthur River and Balgarup River near Quelarup and travels in a south westerly direction through the town of Bridgetown then through Nannup until it discharges into the...
. The brothers had immense difficulty clearing the land, and found the soil not particularly good for farming. Alfred's brother John
John Bussell
John Garrett Bussell was an early settler in Western Australia.John Garrett Bussell was born at Portsea, Hampshire in England on 16 August 1803. He was educated at Winchester College in England, but after the death of his father the family decided to emigrate to Western Australia...
conducted a number of exploring expeditions to the Vasse
Vasse, Western Australia
Vasse is a town in the South West region of Western Australia, west of the town of Busselton and southwest of Perth. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Busselton...
in search of better land, with Alfred accompanying him on at least two expeditions. The explorers found excellent farmland at the Vasse, so after the Bussell's home was destroyed by fire in 1834, the family re-established themselves at the Vasse, where they became successful and prosperous farmers.
In 1850, Alfred Bussell married Ellen Heppingstone, and the following year they moved to Broadwater. In 1857 they moved to Ellensbrook at Margaret River
Margaret River, Western Australia
Margaret River is a town in the South West of Western Australia, located in the valley of the eponymous Margaret River, south of Perth, the state capital. Its Local Government Area is the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River....
, and in 1865 they also took up "Wallcliffe
Wallcliffe House
Wallcliffe House was a heritage listed two storey stone, shingle and corrugated iron homestead located near Prevelly and the mouth of the Margaret River in Western Australia...
", resulting in land holdings that stretched from Cowaramup
Cowaramup, Western Australia
Cowaramup is a town in the South West of Western Australia, 12 kilometres north of Margaret River in the Shire of Augusta-Margaret River.-Name:...
to the Donnelly River
Donnelly River, Western Australia
Donnelly River is a former town and present-day holiday village located in the South West region of Western Australia, at a point between Nannup, Bridgetown and Manjimup on the Donnelly River, a small river which flows into the Southern Ocean...
. From 29 July 1872 until 30 June 1874, Alfred Bussell was a nominee Member of the Western Australian Legislative Council
Western Australian Legislative Council
The Legislative Council, or upper house, is one of the two chambers of parliament in the Australian state of Western Australia. Its central purpose is to act as a house of review for legislation passed through the lower house, the Legislative Assembly. It sits in Parliament House in the state...
. Alfred Bussell's wife died in 1877, and he followed in 1882. They had six sons and eight daughters.