William Shakespeare Hall
Encyclopedia
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
, explorer, pastoralist and pearler, was born in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. With his parents, Henry and Sarah, and five siblings he emigrated 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...
and reached Fremantle
Fremantle, Western Australia
Fremantle is a city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle was the first area settled by the Swan River colonists in 1829...
in February 1830. The family received a large land grant at Mandurah and the locality of Hall's Head
Halls Head, Western Australia
Halls Head is a coastal suburb of Mandurah, immediately west of Mandurah's central area. It is largely residential and contains several canal estates developed since the 1980s....
is named after them, though that venture was a failure.
The family later farmed at Wongong. In 1852, at the age of 27, William went to the Victorian
Victoria (Australia)
Victoria is the second most populous state in Australia. Geographically the smallest mainland state, Victoria is bordered by New South Wales, South Australia, and Tasmania on Boundary Islet to the north, west and south respectively....
goldfields. He returned to Western Australia and joined Francis Thomas Gregory
Francis Thomas Gregory
Francis Thomas Gregory was an English-born Australian explorer and politician.-Biography:Gregory was born at Farnsfield, Nottinghamshire, England, and was the younger brother of the explorer Augustus Gregory...
's expedition exploring the north-west in 1861. In 1863 Hall took up the first sheep station, Andover, in the Roebourne district. On 2 November 1868 he married Hannah Lazenby (daughter of George Lazenby).
He suffered a heart attack while swimming in Cossack
Cossack, Western Australia
Cossack is an historic ghost town located 1,480 km north of Perth and 15 km from Roebourne in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. The nearest town to Cossack is Wickham. At the 2006 census, Cossack had a population of 236....
Creek and was drowned. A tombstone at his grave in Cossack was erected 'as a mark of appreciation and respect by the North West Pioneers'.