John Darling Sr.
| John Darling Sr. | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born |
23 February 1831 Edinburgh, Midlothian, Scotland |
| Died | 10 April 1905 (aged 74) Thurloo, Kensington Road, Norwood, South Australia |
| Children | John Darling Jr., Robert Darling, Charles Alfred Darling, George Darling, James Darling, Frank Darling, Joseph Darling, Isabella Hall |
| Parents | John Darling (– 1841) |
John Darling Sr. (23 February 1831 – 10 April 1905) was a politician in South Australia.
John Darling (23 February 1831 – 10 April 1905) was born in Edinburgh, the second son of John Darling of Duns, into a family of modest means, and was educated at George Heriot's School. His father died when he was 10, and he was forced to leave school at the age of 11.
His first job was as an office boy at the printing shop of Balfour & Jack, but lost that job after 6 or 8 weeks. He next worked at Duncan Sinclair and Sons' type foundry "Whitford House", then at Alexander Wilson & Son, followed by James Marr, Gallie, & Co., where he worked for about 12 years. Several of his friends, including Alexander Dowie and Joseph Ferguson, later an owner of The Register, had emigrated to South Australia in 1851, and realizing the lack of opportunities for advancement in Edinburgh, decided to follow them. He was not a wealthy man, and did not qualify for assisted passage, so it took some time before they emigrated.
Early in 1855, sailing from Leith, he, his wife Isabella, née Ferguson, and two sons (one of whom was John Darling Jr.) arrived at Semaphore, South Australia in the Isabella. Four days later he was working in the Rundle Street store of Berry & Gall. This job did not last long, but through a friend he soon found employment with baker Robert Birrell of Grenfell street. This job lasted two years before he left to earn a living with a horse and cart, and at the same time helped set up his wife in a store adjacent to the Stag Inn on Rundle Street. This failed to attract much custom so they built a shop "Millbrook Store" on Glen Osmond Road, which slowly became profitable. Meanwhile, he had been approached by James Smith, of Giles & Smith, Waymouth street who had a flour mill on West Terrace and in the five years in their employ learned the wheat and flour business. He then resigned from Giles and Smith, and in 1865 was trading independently. In 1867 he took over the sole management of the grain stores in Waymouth Street formerly owned by R. G. Bowen (later to become the factory of D & W. Murray).
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