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DrDuck said:
Hmmm, Lachlan Macquarie would fit a few of the clues, except having a town named after him....

Was it Thomas Brisbane?

Interesting Macquarie has no town named after him. I believe he has more things named after him than anyone else.

EDIT: He does have a town. Port Macquarie.
 
Ramjet said:
Would it be Alexander Berry?

Yes it would be RJ.

He used convict labour to change the course of the Shoalhaven River. The original entrance was very dangerous so he had a canal dug to connect the Shoalhaven River to the Crookhaven River so that boats could enter and leave through a much safer entrance. The original entrance to the Shoalhaven is now permanently closed though it can break through during large floods.

The local story is that he was granted all the land he could see from the top of Coolangatta Mountain but apparently this is incorrect, he and a partner were granted 10,000 acres to farm with convict labour. He later bought out some adjoining properties.

Your turn RJ.
 
Thanks Magilla.

When I was formed I had many influential British shareholders. From a total of 10000 shares less than 600 where reserved for the privileged officers and settlers living in New South Wales. What company am I?
 
Well that was quick. The AA Co it is.

When I was formed, my shareholders included 28 members British parliament, the attorney-general and the solicitor-general of England, 8 directors of the Bank of England, the chairman, deputy-chairman and 5 directors of the British East India Company, plus some well known British bankers and merchants. Of the 10000 shares issued only 588 where available for the officers and settlers living in New South Wales.
Heavily involved in coal in Newcastle in the early days. In fact they had a monopoly for a while. The company is still going strong today.

Over to you Doc.
 
Just a quick one to keep it going, have not had time to refine the clues for google proofness. I've been marking a PhD thesis today, and my brain hurts!

I am a business that still exists, but nearly came to an early end when an employee stole a substantial portion of my money.

Clues will be forthcoming if no one gets it.
 
Didn't know Myers went back so far, GT, but that is not the answer.
The company I have in mind is a fair bit older, and I'm not sure if an employee ever took off with much of Myer's capital. Also, they are not operating under a new name...
 
That's it Magilla,

The Bank of NSW is the oldest operating company in Australia, being established in 1817, seven year before the Australian Agricultural Company, which was established in 1824. On its merger with the Commercial Bank of Australia, its name was changed to Westpac in 1982. However, it is the oldest continuously operating company in Australia. They were almost brought down by their perfidious chief cashier early on:

"This was a challenging time, beginning with a serious loss in 1821 when it was discovered that the Bank of NSW's Chief Cashier had stolen half its subscribed capital, none of which was ever recovered.

The Bank's major expansion began in response to the gold fever in 1851 when it saw an opportunity to set up gold-buying agents in response to the needs of miners and merchants. It had grown from a single office in Sydney to a network of 37 branches by 1861."

Over to you.
 
Another "who am I"
I was a British Captain of a merchant ship. I was also the first from my country to visit Australian waters.
 
That's the bloke RJ, Captain John Brookes. His ship the Tryall, struck a reef near the Montebello Islands in 1622, some years before Dampier visited us.
I will have to have a read back through the thread to see just what has been asked. Your turn mate.
 

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