Thomas Jamison
| Thomas Jamison | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 1753 Ireland |
| Died | 25 January 1811 London, England |
| Nationality | English |
| Occupation | Surgeon, farmer, magistrate |
| Parent(s) | William and Mary (nee Fisher) Jamison |
Thomas Jamison (1752/1753 – 25 January 1811) was a prominent surgeon, government official, mercantile trader and land owner of Sydney. Jamison was also a member of the First Fleet expedition of 11 ships which founded the Australian colony of New South Wales in 1788. Twenty years later he participated in the Rum Rebellion, which deposed the colony's governor, William Bligh.
Thomas Jamison came originally from Ireland and was of Ulster-Scots descent. He was born at the seaside village of Ballywalter, on the Ards Peninsula, County Down, in late 1752 or, more probably, the beginning of 1753. (His Presbyterian baptism took place in Ballywalter on 10 January of the latter year.) According to church records his parents were William Jamison (or "Jameson") and Mary Jamison (née Fisher). For generations, his forebears had made their living from farming or from the sea.
Young Jamison excelled as a pupil at his parish school. He married comparatively early, went to live in neighbouring County Antrim, fathered several legitimate children (Mary, John and Jane), and studied to be a surgeon. He decided to join the Royal Navy to advance himself in the world, receiving a naval surgeon's warrant in either 1777 or 1780 (sources differ). In 1786, he was assigned to HMS Sirius as a surgeon's mate (apprentice surgeon). Sirius had been designated to act as the armed escort to a convoy of convict transports and supply ships that would become known as the First Fleet. The fleet's mission was to establish a permanent British penal colony in New South Wales, on the strategic east coast of Australia.
Jamison sailed for Australia in May 1787 from Portsmouth, southern England. He arrived safely with the fleet at their final destination, the site of the future City of Sydney, in January the following year. Shortly after their arrival, the commander of the fleet, Governor Arthur Phillip, sent a detachment of guards, convicts and naval personnel – including Jamison – from Sydney Cove to Norfolk Island. They were under orders to plant an ancillary colony on the island, which is located in the Pacific Ocean, roughly halfway between Australia and New Zealand.
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