COAL RIVER HISTORY

Born circa 1788.  Married Marie Josephine Villeneuve.  Had at least six children: Francis Villeneuve (b. 1819), William Villeneuve (b. 1824), James, Tobias (died in Sydney, January 1829), Emma and Rosa Jane (died in Sydney, January 1829).¹  A memorial for the two latter children was erected in St. David's Cemetery, Hobart. Smith was a merchant, and Private Secretary to Emperor Petion in Haiti until (probably) 1818.  Arrived in Van Diemen's Land in 1828.  Purchased George Weston Gunning's estate on the Coal River in March 1829.  In late March 1829, Smith advertised all the goods in his Hobart store for sale, as he was "about to retire upon his farm."²  The goods were held on consignment in R. Lewis' store, and included clothing, axes, tinned iron, tea kettles, etc. Interestingly, Smith stated that "Any of the above goods will be exchanged for Stock or wheat."  Smith renamed the property Campania, and commenced construction of a homestead on the western bank of the Coal River, opposite Gunning's former house.  In 1832, the Quaker Missionaries, James Backhouse and George Washington Walker visited Campania.  Backhouse wrote in his Journal:
"We visited some of the settlers upon the Coal River.  In this district there is a striking variety in the settlers.  One of them is an intelligent man from one of the West India Islands, who is improving a beautiful park-like estate…"
Walker wrote in his Journal:
"We dined with Francis Smith, an intelligent man of property, from Lidfield [sic] in Sussex, who emigrated to this Colony three or four years ago.  His wife is a native of St. Domingo, where he resided for many years, and was the confidential friend and private secretary of the Emperor Petion.  His estate is one of the finest we have seen, both for situation and soil; from an elevated position it resembles an gentleman's park."
Smith was joint owner of the sloop Richmond Packet with George Wray from 1831 until September 1834. Appointed J.P. for the Richmond district on 19^th October 1837.  Smith also owned a property named Villeneuve at Prosser's Plains.  Smith leased the property to John Mitchell during 1849-56.  In 1854 Smith purchased Belle Vue House in Richmond from Benjamin Berthon for £900.  Died in Hobart on 8^th September 1855, aged 67 years and 10 months.  Inscription on Vault: "Late of Campania in this District, Esquire, J.P…." Buried in Smith Vault, St. Luke's Cemetery, Richmond.  Memorial in St. Luke's Church, Richmond.  Father of Sir Francis Villeneuve Smith.

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¹ A memorial stood in St. David's Cemetery, Hobart, for "Tobias and Rosa Jane, children of Francis and Josephine Smith, died at Sydney in January 1829.": Richard Lord, Inscriptions in Stone, p. 202.
² Hobart Town Courier, 28 March 1829, p. 1, col. 2.

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