James Munro (sealer)

A view in Tasmania - Preservation Island, off SW corner of Cape Barren Island; view of the establishment of James Munro in centre, on broad plain, surrounded by cluster of trees. 1831 Pen and grey ink and watercolour(Henry Laing, 1831)

James Munro (c1779-c1845^[1]) was a British convict who was transported to Australia, and established himself as a farmer on Preservation Island, Tasmania, and community leader of the region's community of European seal hunters, known as "King of the Eastern Straits.^[2]

Munro established himself on the island, with himself and his varying female partners being its only inhabitants. There he built structures, raised livestock, and harvested the meat and eggs of mutton birds.^[3]

Munro was appointed local constable in 1825, and opposed George Augustus Robinson's attempts to prevent relationships between sealers and Aboriginal women.^[4] It is still disputed as to the consensuality of these relationships, with some arguing that the relationships were often voluntary and mutually beneficial, but Munro was also accused of leading sealers in raiding parties to capture Aboriginal women in 1830.^[5]

References

1. Valentine, Barbara (2005). "Munro, James (1779–1845)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Supplementary Volume. Canberra: Australian National University. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
2. Religious Tract Society (Great Britain) (1799). Australia: Its Scenery, Natural History, and Resources, with a Glance at Its Gold Fields. pp. 9–.
3. James Backhouse (1843). A Narrative of a Visit to the Australian Colonies. Hamilton, Adams and Co. pp. 75–.
4. Vivienne Rae-Ellis (1996). Black Robinson: Protector of Aborigines. Melbourne University Publish. pp. 72–. ISBN 978-0-522-84744-4.
5. Anna Haebich (1 November 2000). Broken Circles: Fragmenting Indigenous Families 1800-2000. Fremantle Press. pp. 80–. ISBN 978-1-921888-14-4.