Robert Towns

Robert Towns (c. 1794 – 11 April 1873) was a businessman, pastoralist, and founder of Townsville, Queensland. Much of his success came from blackbirding, the practise of coercing and kidnapping South Sea Islanders as slave labourers.

Towns was born at Longhorsley, Northumberland, England, on 10 November 1794. This is the date usually given, and it agrees with his death notice which stated that he was then in his seventy-ninth year. The date given by the Australian Encyclopaedia, 1791, appears to be more likely, as after being educated at a village school Towns went to sea, was a mate in 1811, and a master in the following year. In 1813 he was captain of a brig in the Mediterranean, and in 1827 he made his first voyage to Australia as captain of The Brothers.

On 28 December 1833 he married Sophia Wentworth at St Philip's Church, Sydney; the couple honeymooned at Toongabbie at the estate of William Charles Wentworth (Sophia's brother).

In 1842 he established a mercantile and shipping business (Robert Towns & Co., General Merchants, Ship and Commission Agents) at Sydney. In a letter to William de Salis dated Sydney, 4 January 1853 Towns describes a shipping issue:

Towns was a member of the initial New South Wales Legislative Council from 22 May 1856 to 10 May 1861 (a 5-year appointment, terminated by his resignation in support of the council president) and then re-appointed for life on 23 June 1863, terminating at his death on 11 April 1873. Although he did not take a leading part in politics, his advice was much sought in matters affecting business.

He lived from 1864 to 1873 in Cranbrook House on New South Head Road in Rose Bay, Sydney.

He afterwards bought station properties in Queensland, and about 1860 or a little later began growing cotton, relying on South Sea Islander slaves to do the cultivation and picking. Many attempts had been made to grow cotton in Australia before this time, but Towns was the first to do so on a large scale. Realizing that a port was needed on the Queensland coast north of Bowen, Towns arranged for explorations to be made from his stations, a suitable site was found at Cleveland Bay, and on to October 1865 it was gazetted as a port of entry and named Townsville.

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