W. P. Auld
Encyclopedia
William Patrick Auld (27 May 1840 – 2 September 1912), usually known by his initials or as "Patrick", was an Adelaide, South Australian vigneron and wine merchant born in Stalybridge
(near Manchester, England), the son of Patrick Auld (1811 – 21 January 1886) and Eliza Auld (née McKinnell, 1806 – 8 July 1873).
He took part in John McDouall Stuart
's sixth expedition (Dec 1861 – Dec 1862) which successfully crossed Australia from south to north. He was also a member of B. T. Finniss's 1864 expedition to select a capital for the Northern Territory
– during this expedition an incident occurred which resulted in his being tried for murder of an Aborigine.
For many years he managed his father's famous vineyard "Auldana" and was recognised as an accomplished vigneron and wine judge.
which he named "Auldana" (in the area now named Auldana). In 1847 or 1849 the father sold the Hindley Street business to Messrs. Disher and Milne and the family returned to England, enrolling the son at an institution named "King's College", perhaps King's College School
. The father returned to Adelaide alone in 1852, building a residence on one block of "Auldana" and between 1846 and 1856 developed the other as a vineyard which In February 1862 he floated the South Auldana Vineyard Association with a capital of £12,500. Directors of the Association were Abraham Scott, George Tinline (grandfather of Sir George Murray
, John Hodgkiss, Patrick Auld and William Wadham. In 1863 they sent a shipment of wines to the London Exhibition which was favourably received, but the Association went into voluntary liquidation in October 1865. Around this time he set up a wine export business in Gilbert Place. In 1876 he had 104 acres under vines.
for the capital of the Northern Territory
. Auld, as surveyor, was one of the party that left Port Adelaide on the "Henry Ellis" on 23 April 1864 for Adam Bay. He was a member of the exploration party led by surgeon Belgrave Ninnis
which arrived at Palmerston on HMS Beatrice in April 1865. He explored areas west of the Adelaide River as far as Howard River, King Creek and Port Darwin.
(from a letter from Auld to his father)
In another letter, he wrote
It is not recorded whether those responsible were ever apprehended or tried, nor is it clear whether the first related to himself.
At the trial no evidence was brought for the prosecution, rather there was a report that the man shot at (named Dombey or Bombey) was still alive. Auld was acquitted when the two witnesses against him did not take the stand (one, Packard, had accidentally drowned) but he aroused considerable public antipathy by then attempting to claim costs from parliament, a move which was defeated after strenuous opposition from (among others) H.B.T. Strangways
, who was contemptuous of Auld's defence that he was following Finniss's orders.
On 15 November 1866 he married Eliza Hartland Strawbridge (1842? – 20 February 1916), eldest daughter of William S. Strawbridge (1843–1911), who replaced Goyder as Surveyor General, and Eliza Stockholm Strawbridge (1818–1897). Eliza wrote poetry in collaboration with her mother, and published a volume of her own in 1913.
. In 1871 he formed a partnership Auld, Burton and Co. of Mill Street, behind Hanover Square
, to handle his wines. In 1882 Mr. Hally Burton declared himself bankrupt and the trustees sold his share of the business to his assistant Mr. Cocks, who was then stripped of his franchise for unauthorised use of the "Auldana" brand. Around this time the business was renamed Australian Wine Co with an emu
for its logo and was in 1885 sold to Aylwin Pownall and as Emu Wine Co. became a major importer of Australian wines to Britain and Canada.
Around 1881, in failing health, Patrick and his daughter moved to New Zealand
were he spent his last years, dying at Norman Hill, a suburb of Onehunga near Auckland in 1886, aged 75.
, leaving his home of 43 years. but retained the Gilbert Place business, which in 1910 became W. P. Auld and Sons Ltd. with his sons W. G. "George" Auld and E. P. Auld as executive officers. It is not recorded whether W. P. Auld retained any interest in the company.
George Auld was for many years the company's traveller and E. P. Auld was secretary at least until 1914. In 1923 the company became part of Adelaide Wine and Spirit Co. Ltd. at Hackney Road, Hackney
with Walkerville Cooperative Brewing Co. Ltd. the major shareholders, and W. G. Auld as chairman and president. The company was liquidated in 1940. George was for several years president of the Vinegrowers' Association. A third-generation descendant of W. P. Auld, Michael Auld, was manager of Stonyfell Winery's vineyards and cellars around 1950 and a fourth-generation descendant, George Patrick Auld, was in 1977 managing director of Angle Vale Vineyards Pty. Ltd.
) and a foundation member of the Adelaide Hunt Club. He was a council member of the Adelaide branch of the Royal Geographic Society
and at one time president of the Australian Natives' Association. As a younger man he was interested in amateur theatricals, and was, with W. S. Strawbridge and old-school chum W. H. Phillipps , a member of the Clayton Young Mens Society, and again with Phillipps, the Norwood Young Men's Society
He served for a time as councillor for the Magill ward in the District of Burnside.
The Adelaide suburb of Auldana
stands on the site of the old vineyard. One street is named Patrick Auld Drive; others are named for grape varieties: Hermitage Road, Traminer Way, Shiraz Place, Verdelho Court.
Stalybridge
Stalybridge is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Tameside in Greater Manchester, England, with a population of 22,568. Historically a part of Cheshire, it is east of Manchester city centre and northwest of Glossop. With the construction of a cotton mill in 1776, Stalybridge became one of...
(near Manchester, England), the son of Patrick Auld (1811 – 21 January 1886) and Eliza Auld (née McKinnell, 1806 – 8 July 1873).
He took part in John McDouall Stuart
John McDouall Stuart
John McDouall Stuart was one of the most accomplished and famous of all Australia's inland explorers. Stuart led the first successful expedition to traverse the Australian mainland from south to north and return, and the first to do so from a starting point in South Australia, achieving this...
's sixth expedition (Dec 1861 – Dec 1862) which successfully crossed Australia from south to north. He was also a member of B. T. Finniss's 1864 expedition to select a capital for the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
– during this expedition an incident occurred which resulted in his being tried for murder of an Aborigine.
For many years he managed his father's famous vineyard "Auldana" and was recognised as an accomplished vigneron and wine judge.
Father founds "Auldana"
Patrick and Eliza Auld, with son William Patrick and daughters Agnes and Georgiana, (Agnes (1837?-24 June 1886) became Mrs Pollard of Eudunda, and Georgiana never married and lived with father towards the end of his life) moved to South Australia in 1841 or 1842 on the Fortitude. The father set up as a wine and spirit merchant in the Old Exchange Buildings in Hindley Street and shortly after purchased two lots of land, each of 230 acres at £1 per acre, in MagillMagill, South Australia
Magill is a suburb of Adelaide in the City of Burnside and the City of Campbelltown.-History:Magill is a suburb located approximately 7 km from the Adelaide CBD in the eastern suburbs. Magill was first established as the Makgill Estate, owned by two Scots, Robert Cock and William Ferguson,...
which he named "Auldana" (in the area now named Auldana). In 1847 or 1849 the father sold the Hindley Street business to Messrs. Disher and Milne and the family returned to England, enrolling the son at an institution named "King's College", perhaps King's College School
King's College School
King's College School, commonly referred to as KCS, King's, or KCS Wimbledon, is an independent school for day pupils in Wimbledon in south-west London. The school was founded as the junior department of King's College London and occupied part of its premises in Strand, before relocating to...
. The father returned to Adelaide alone in 1852, building a residence on one block of "Auldana" and between 1846 and 1856 developed the other as a vineyard which In February 1862 he floated the South Auldana Vineyard Association with a capital of £12,500. Directors of the Association were Abraham Scott, George Tinline (grandfather of Sir George Murray
George John Robert Murray
Sir George John Robert Murray KCMG was a judge from 2 April 1913 until 18 February 1942 on the Supreme Court of South Australia, which is the highest ranking court in the Australian State of South Australia...
, John Hodgkiss, Patrick Auld and William Wadham. In 1863 they sent a shipment of wines to the London Exhibition which was favourably received, but the Association went into voluntary liquidation in October 1865. Around this time he set up a wine export business in Gilbert Place. In 1876 he had 104 acres under vines.
Education and Employment
In 1853 or 1854 the family returned to South Australia where young W. P. Auld completed his education at J. L. Young's Adelaide Educational Institution, and secured a cadet position with G. W. Goyder, Surveyor General of South Australia.Stuart's sixth expedition
In 1861, W. P. Auld he was selected to join the sixth Stuart expedition.- John McDouall Stuart officially set out on 25 October 1861 from “Montefiore House”, the residence of James and Catherine Chambers in North Adelaide. The party physically left Adelaide on 7 November. This was his third, and ultimately successful attempt to cross Australia. On 24 July 1862, they planted the Union Jack on the beach of Van Diemen's Gulf. The Expedition completed the first European crossing of Australia, from Adelaide to Van Diemen Gulf, passing through the Centre of the Continent, and returning along the same route without loss of life.
The Finniss expedition
In 1864 the South Australian government charged B. T. Finniss with finding a suitable site by the Adelaide RiverAdelaide River
Adelaide River is a river in the Northern Territory of Australia. It starts in Litchfield National Park and flows generally northwards to Clarence Strait, being crossed by both the Stuart Highway and the Arnhem Highway...
for the capital of the Northern Territory
Northern Territory
The Northern Territory is a federal territory of Australia, occupying much of the centre of the mainland continent, as well as the central northern regions...
. Auld, as surveyor, was one of the party that left Port Adelaide on the "Henry Ellis" on 23 April 1864 for Adam Bay. He was a member of the exploration party led by surgeon Belgrave Ninnis
Belgrave Ninnis
Inspector-General Belgrave Ninnis was a Royal Navy surgeon, surveyor, Arctic explorer, and leading Freemason, from London. He graduated as a Doctor of Medicine from the University of St Andrews in 1861, and the same year entered the navy as an Assistant Surgeon...
which arrived at Palmerston on HMS Beatrice in April 1865. He explored areas west of the Adelaide River as far as Howard River, King Creek and Port Darwin.
Murders of Aborigines
During the Finniss expedition Auld was accused of murder of an aboriginal man at either Adam Bay, or Chambers Bay, near Escape Cliffs.(from a letter from Auld to his father)
- The Colonel (Finniss) then gave orders that seven horsemen were to be in readiness to start next morning and try to find the natives' camp, and recover the goods they had stolen from us, and to treat them as felons. I went over to Chambers' Bay with two men, acting aa scouts. Fifty (natives) tried to surround us. I shot at one, and sent one of the men to tell the footmen to come to our assistance. They were showing real fighting. Directly the footmen made their appearance the blacks disappeared like magic into the shrub. We recovered a quantity of the stores and goods. The Doctor, (Dr Walker, Protector of Aborigines) I believe, has brought a charge against me for shooting the black. He sent it to the Governor, but he would not receive it; so I hear be intends sending it to Adelaide. It is only done out of ill-feeling to the Colonel.
In another letter, he wrote
- The natives are not very numerous here, but they are great thieves and very cunning and artful. There have been two shot by our party here; one, I think was justifiable, and the other a cold-blooded murder.
It is not recorded whether those responsible were ever apprehended or tried, nor is it clear whether the first related to himself.
At the trial no evidence was brought for the prosecution, rather there was a report that the man shot at (named Dombey or Bombey) was still alive. Auld was acquitted when the two witnesses against him did not take the stand (one, Packard, had accidentally drowned) but he aroused considerable public antipathy by then attempting to claim costs from parliament, a move which was defeated after strenuous opposition from (among others) H.B.T. Strangways
Henry Strangways
Henry Bull Templar Strangways was an Australian politician and Premier of South Australia.Strangways was the eldest son of Henry Bull Strangways of Shapwick, Somerset, England. He visited South Australia as a boy. Returning to England he entered at the Middle Temple in November 1851 and was called...
, who was contemptuous of Auld's defence that he was following Finniss's orders.
Back in Adelaide
On 1 September Police trooper Potter was sent to Adam Bay 23 September 1866 on the "Ellen Lewis" with warrants for the arrest of Auld's fellow-accused William Dougall and Adam Chandler. Auld (who had returned earlier, perhaps on the "Coorong" on 6 April 1866) had already been charged and was out on bail.On 15 November 1866 he married Eliza Hartland Strawbridge (1842? – 20 February 1916), eldest daughter of William S. Strawbridge (1843–1911), who replaced Goyder as Surveyor General, and Eliza Stockholm Strawbridge (1818–1897). Eliza wrote poetry in collaboration with her mother, and published a volume of her own in 1913.
- Their daughter, Edith Mary Auld (30 October 1867–25 August 1928) married Edward E. Cleland.
- Elder son William George "George" Auld (3 December 1868 – 24 February 1926) was for some time partner in W. P. Auld and Sons. He was elected auditor for the District of Burnside. and for some years councillor for the East Norwood ward of the Kensington and Norwood council. and was a longtime secretary of the Phylloxera Board and president of the South Australian Winegrowers' Association. As a young man he was a keen rower and lacrosse player and later served in executive positions associated with these sports. He also rode with the Adelaide Hunt Club.
- Younger son Ernest Patrick "Pat" Auld (10 March 1870 – 2 November 1938) was at one time partner in W. P. Auld and Sons, then manager of TusmoreTusmore, South Australia-History:In 1839, a pastoralist William Rogers, settled in the area and named his land Tusmore after his birthplace in Oxfordshire, England. In 1911 the area roughly corresponding to modern-day Tusmore, known as Section 291, was owned by the Colonial Board of Advice of the South Australian Company...
branch of Triton Insurance. He was foundation president of Kensington Cricket ClubKensington Cricket ClubThe Kensington District Cricket Club is a semi-professional cricket club in Adelaide, South Australia. It competes in the South Australian Grade Cricket League, which is administered by the South Australian Cricket Association .-Location:...
, secretary of the South Australian branch of the Royal Empire Society and for several years president of the Adelaide Dual Club, whose aims were the appreciation of arts and science.
- A son, born 24 September 1871, lived only a few hours.
- Another daughter, Eliza Adeline (3 September 1872 – 19 December 1872), died of whooping cough.
Auldana Vineyard
In 1869 his father Patrick returned to England to advance his wine business, opening the Auldana Vineyard Office at Walbrook House at 37 Walbrook Street, London EC in 1869. In 1870 he handed the business over to Messrs. Leigh and Apps Smith, and the office was moved to Fenchurch StreetFenchurch Street
Fenchurch Street is a street in the City of London home to a number of shops, pubs and offices. It links Aldgate at its eastern end with Lombard Street and Gracechurch Street to the west. To the south of Fenchurch Street and towards its eastern end is Fenchurch Street railway station...
. In 1871 he formed a partnership Auld, Burton and Co. of Mill Street, behind Hanover Square
Hanover Square
Hanover Square may refer to:* Hanover Square, London, England* Hanover Square, Manhattan, New York City, USA** Hanover Square , elevated station* Hanover Square, Syracuse, USA-See also:* Hanover Square Rooms, London...
, to handle his wines. In 1882 Mr. Hally Burton declared himself bankrupt and the trustees sold his share of the business to his assistant Mr. Cocks, who was then stripped of his franchise for unauthorised use of the "Auldana" brand. Around this time the business was renamed Australian Wine Co with an emu
Emu
The Emu Dromaius novaehollandiae) is the largest bird native to Australia and the only extant member of the genus Dromaius. It is the second-largest extant bird in the world by height, after its ratite relative, the ostrich. There are three subspecies of Emus in Australia...
for its logo and was in 1885 sold to Aylwin Pownall and as Emu Wine Co. became a major importer of Australian wines to Britain and Canada.
Around 1881, in failing health, Patrick and his daughter moved to New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
were he spent his last years, dying at Norman Hill, a suburb of Onehunga near Auckland in 1886, aged 75.
W. P. Auld and Sons Ltd.
In 1888, after his father's death, W. P. Auld sold "Auldana" to its mortgagee Josiah SymonJosiah Symon
Hon Sir Josiah Henry Symon KCMG , Scottish-Australian lawyer and politician, was a member of the Australian Senate in the First Australian Parliament, and an Attorney-General of Australia.-Biography:...
, leaving his home of 43 years. but retained the Gilbert Place business, which in 1910 became W. P. Auld and Sons Ltd. with his sons W. G. "George" Auld and E. P. Auld as executive officers. It is not recorded whether W. P. Auld retained any interest in the company.
George Auld was for many years the company's traveller and E. P. Auld was secretary at least until 1914. In 1923 the company became part of Adelaide Wine and Spirit Co. Ltd. at Hackney Road, Hackney
Hackney, South Australia
-References:...
with Walkerville Cooperative Brewing Co. Ltd. the major shareholders, and W. G. Auld as chairman and president. The company was liquidated in 1940. George was for several years president of the Vinegrowers' Association. A third-generation descendant of W. P. Auld, Michael Auld, was manager of Stonyfell Winery's vineyards and cellars around 1950 and a fourth-generation descendant, George Patrick Auld, was in 1977 managing director of Angle Vale Vineyards Pty. Ltd.
Public life
In 1893 he was elected president of the South Australian Vignerons' Association. For many years he was a member of the Royal Agricultural & Horticultural Society of South Australia and frequently served as a wine judge. He was a keen horseman (he had often ridden with Adam Lindsay GordonAdam Lindsay Gordon
Adam Lindsay Gordon was an Australian poet, jockey and politician.- Early life :Gordon was born at Fayal in the Azores, son of Captain Adam Durnford Gordon who had married his first cousin, Harriet Gordon, both of whom were descended from Adam of Gordon of the ballad...
) and a foundation member of the Adelaide Hunt Club. He was a council member of the Adelaide branch of the Royal Geographic Society
Royal Geographical Society of Australasia
Royal Geographical Society of Australasia- On 22 June 1883, the Geographical Society of Australasia started at a meeting in Sydney . Branches were formed in Victoria and Queensland in the same year . In July 1885 the South Australian Branch started...
and at one time president of the Australian Natives' Association. As a younger man he was interested in amateur theatricals, and was, with W. S. Strawbridge and old-school chum W. H. Phillipps , a member of the Clayton Young Mens Society, and again with Phillipps, the Norwood Young Men's Society
He served for a time as councillor for the Magill ward in the District of Burnside.
Recognition
Auld's Lagoon and the district Auld, both in the greater Darwin area are named for him. Fred's Pass, in the Daly Ranges, and Fred's Pass Road (which, extended, became the Stuart Highway) were named by him for his fellow-explorer Fred Litchfield, whose name is also commemorated in the nearby Litchfield shire. The outer Darwin suburb of Fred's Pass is linked to the name of the old road, not the Pass itself.The Adelaide suburb of Auldana
Auldana, South Australia
Auldana is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Burnside. It stands on the site of a once-famous vineyard "Auldana" established by Patrick Auld. Many of the streets are named for grape varieties.-References:...
stands on the site of the old vineyard. One street is named Patrick Auld Drive; others are named for grape varieties: Hermitage Road, Traminer Way, Shiraz Place, Verdelho Court.