William Henry Norman

William Henry Norman (1812–1869) was a sea captain in Australia. As commander of the HMCS Victoria, he engaged in the First Taranaki War in New Zealand and the search for explorers Burke and Wills.

William Henry Norman was born in March 1812 in Upnor, Kent, England. He entered the mercantine marine service and became a master mariner.

Norman was captain of the Lord Hungerford, a vessel owned by Captain Farquharson for nine years. From 1848, he was the commander of the Coromandel for four years. In 1851, he joined the General Screw Steam Shipping Company where he superinteded the fit-out of the Lady Jocelyn which he took to Australia. On returning to England, the company appointed him to Queen of the South, which he took to Australia.

One of the passengers on the Queen of the South was Sir Charles Hotham, travelling to take up apppointment as Governor of Victoria. A naval officer himself, Hotham was impressed with Norman and engaged his services for the new colony of Victoria. As Britiain was actively at war with Russia in the Crimean War, Hotham decided that Victoria needed an armed steam sloop for its defence against Russian attack. On returning to Britain on the Queen of the South, Norman resigned his appointment with the company and commenced his engagement with the Victorian Government.

Norman's first duty was to commission the construction of the vessel, the HMCS Victoria, and then sail it to Hobson's Bay in Port Phillip, Victoria. The ship was then deployed on a series of operations under Norman's command.

The operations including sailing to Port Curtis, Queensland to rescue the Victorian gold miners who had abandoned Victoria for a new Queensland gold rush and found themselves destitute; the Victorian Government offered free passage back to Victoria where workers were urgently needed.

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