William Field (Snr.) (c. 1774 – 1837) was aconvict turnedpastoralist, meat contractor, and publican inVan Diemen's Land (nowTasmania,Australia).
Born inEnfield, nearLondon in about 1774, Field began his working life as afarmer andbutcher.[1] In 1800, at the age of 26, he was convicted of receiving nine stolensheep from his brother, Richard[2] and in 1806 was transported to the then newly established colony ofVan Diemen’s Land, nowTasmania. Leaving behind a wife, Sarah, and an infant daughter, Ann (whom he would never see again)[1] Field travelled en route toLaunceston on theFortune toSydney and then theSophia toPort Dalrymple.[3] After Field'ssentence ended in 1814 he went on to lease land, purchasecattle and supplymeat to the colony.
By the time his 14-year sentence[4] had been completed Field had already proven himself useful to the new colony as afarmer andmerchant. As a free man he continued acquiring land and cattle and by 1820 had become the main supplier of meat for theLaunceston region.
By 1828, Field was running 3,000 head ofcattle and 2,000 sheep betweenLongford andWestbury. This had increased to 10,000 cattle by the1830s, by which time he had enough of amonopoly to be known as the ‘Cattle King ofVan Diemen’s Land’.[1]
Field's property holding also increased in the1820s and1830s including his acquisition ofEnfield (1,040 acres) atBishopsbourne,Westfield (1,640 acres) andRoxford (2,470 acres) atWestbury, andEastfield (2,200 acres) andWoodfield (2000 acres) atCressy.[1] Further town properties were purchased, and as a result, Field reportedly owned one-third of the land and buildings in centralLaunceston at one time.[1] By one estimate, around his death in 1837 Field owned over 16,000 acres (65 km2) of land, and had amassed had a fortune that ranked him - as proportion of Australia’sGDP - as the 7th richestAustralian, and richestTasmanian, ever to have lived.[5][6]
Field's partner was Elizabeth Richards, who herself had been aconvict. Richards had been sentenced to death in 1806 for stealing cotton andlace but her sentence had been commuted to transportation for life. Together they had five children,[3] William (1816–??) (married Sarah Lucas, 1839),[7] Thomas (1817–??) (married Elizabeth Lindsay, 1847),[8] Richard (born 1820 who died seven weeks later), John (1821–??) (married Mary Anne Lindsay, 1854),[9] and Charles (1826–??) (married Margaret Eddington, 1848).[10]
William Field Snr. died inLaunceston aged 63 in 1837, survived by four sons.[11] Field's son Thomas had a daughter who would go on to become the famedwoodcarver,Ellen Nora Payne.[12]