John Townson

Who was John Townson?

John Townson was an army officer and settler in the colony of New South Wales. He entered the 18th Regiment in 1779 and was part of the Gibraltar garrison. He transferred to the New South Wales Corps in October 1789, and arrived in Sydney on the Second Fleet ship Scarborough in June 1790.

Townson spent most of his military service in the colony at Norfolk Island where he was stationed for six years and received a twenty acre lease. In 1794 he was a member of the court of inquiry investigating Lieutenant Governor King's actions during the 1793 mutiny on the island. He was promoted and captain, and from September 1796 to November 1799 acted as lieutenant-governor of Norfolk Island while King was absent in England.

His administration was generally efficient and he seems to have had a steadying influence on the population of convicts and settlers. During his regime the only ship built on the island, the sloop Norfolk, used by Matthew Flinders to circumnavigate Van Diemen's Land, was constructed in 1798. He lacked confidence in Governor Hunter and his complaints to England played a part in Hunter's recall.