John Pascoe Fawkner was an early Australian pioneer, businessman and politician of Melbourne, Australia. In 1835 he financed a party of free settlers from Van Diemen's Land, to sail to the mainland in his ship, Enterprize. Fawkner's party sailed to Port Phillip and up the Yarra River to found a settlement which became the city of Melbourne.
Portrait of John Pascoe Fawkner, founder of Melbourne, by William Strutt, 1856: oil on canvas; 61.3 x 51.2 cm. National Library of Australia.
William Strutt. Eliza Fawkner 1801–1879. State Library Victoria, Melbourne, Australia. H32027
The Enterprize, Fawkner's ship. State Library Victoria, Melbourne, Australia. H36536
Melbourne from The Falls, 1838 by Robert Russell. State Library Victoria, Melbourne, Australia. H24528.
The topsail schooner Enterprize, also spelled and illustrated as Enterprise, was built in Hobart, Tasmania in 1830 by William Pender. It was used for coastal transport of cargo such as coal, livestock, and supplies.
The Enterprize at the site of Melbourne