Joseph William Torrey

Col. Joseph William Torrey, Rajah of Ambong and Marudu, (April 22, 1828 in Bath, Maine; – June 22, 1885 in Boston) was an American merchant, president of the American Trading Company of Borneo and co-founder of the American colony "Ellena" (in present-day Kimanis) together with Thomas Bradley Harris on the island of Borneo. He was known as "Yankee Rajah" and served as a U.S. vice-consul to Siam.

Torrey was born on April 22, 1828 in the American small town of Bath in Maine. He was the son of Joseph Gendall Torrey and Emily Houghton. His father practiced the craft of a printer and was also the founder of the Maine Gazette, which is the town first newspaper. In 1834, the family moved to Roxbury, a district of Boston. Torrey graduated from the Boston High School under Rev. Dr. Leach. At first, he also learned the printing business and worked for several years in the company of his father, which brought him into contact with the satirical magazine, Carpet Bag by Benjamin Penhallow Shillaber. Torrey served in several companies and was a member of the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Boston. However, the authenticity of his military grade "Colonel" is questioned.

In 1853, he left Boston and went to Melbourne, Australia, where he worked as a clerk at Caldwell, Train & Co., Commission Merchants and Steam Packet Agents. He was also a member of Torrey & Foodrich and Company, Discharging Clerks. In addition to his work, he began studying law; although it was not known if he received an academic degree in law. In Melbourne, he joined the Masonic lodge and later became the Grand Master. On September 22, 1854, during his time in Australia, he married his first wife, Eliza Lydia Ewer in Victoria. The couple had two children, Emiline Eliza (born in 1856) and Cordelia Grace (born in 1858). One year after the birth of their second children, Eliza however died young after battling with a short illness at the age of 27 years. Torrey returned with his two children to Roxbury in 1860, where they grew up with their grandparents.

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