amateur photographer(?), collector and landowner, was the youngest son of the pioneer colonists John Macarthur and Elizabeth, née Veale. He was born at Elizabeth Farm, Parramatta, New South Wales. After being educated by a private tutor and in England, William spent most of his life living with his brother James, James’s wife, Emily , and their daughter Elizabeth at Camden Park, which he had inherited jointly with James and where he had his own bachelor wing. He became well known as a sheep-breeder, vigneron, collector, horticulturalist and politician. He exhibited prize wool and wood specimens from New South Wales in the 1851 Great Exhibition in London and won many prizes for other primary products in colonial exhibitions, especially wine and wood. He was a commissioner for New South Wales at the 1855 Paris Universal Exhibition and was knighted in 1856.

Although pastoral and agricultural interests were dominant, William Macarthur played an important role in many of Sydney’s cultural institutions. He was on the committee of the Australian Museum from 1836 and a trustee from 1853; in 1870 he became a trustee of the Free Public Library. He was vice-president of the Acclimatisation Society of New South Wales in 1860, as well as being president, then senior vice-president of the Agricultural Society of New South Wales. He was a member of the Senate of Sydney University (1860-80) and a longstanding member of the New South Wales Parliament (1849-55 and 1864-1882), although neither an active nor interested politician.

Albums of 1850s photographs collected at Camden Park (Mitchell Library) have for many years been considered mainly Sir William’s work, although some photographs were clearly identified as having been taken by others when Jack Cato was allowed to remove them from the albums and inspect their backs. He assumed that the rest were Macarthur’s, including photographs of the Solomon Islands, the New Hebrides and Sydney University. In fact, most of the overseas views were taken by Matthew Fortescue Moresby (some are initialled M.F.M.), while those of Sydney University are by John Smith . Views of other Sydney buildings are by W. Hetzer and R. Hunt and Hetzer took individual portraits of the Onslow family and William Macleay. Informal photographs of family groups at Camden Park seem to be all that remain to claim for Sir William. Now even these have been attributed to Arthur Onslow , the naval captain who married Sir William’s niece Elizabeth, although this has not yet been substantiated. The albums are being recatalogued by Alan Davies.

Writers:

Willis, Anne-Marie

Date written:

1992

Last updated:

2011