Hand Cast Brass Lunch Bell from Fairlawn

Captain John Molloy was born in London, 5 September 1786. After a distinguished career in the British military, he became one of the original settlers of Augusta and an influential public figure in Busselton.

Molloy bought a commission in the Rifle Brigade when he came into his inheritance at the age of 21. He fought in the Peninsular War of 1808 to 1810 where he was promoted to lieutenant. From 1812 to 1814, he fought in the Napoleonic Wars under Wellington, taking part in eight battles. In 1815 he fought at Waterloo where he was badly wounded and received the Waterloo Medal. When he returned to active duty, he was posted to Glasgow from 1819 to 1820, then to Ireland until 1825, where he was promoted to captain.

On 6 August 1829, Molloy married Georgiana Kennedy and in October 1829 they sailed for Western Australia on board The Warrior. On arriving at the Swan River Colony, in March 1830, Governor Stirling suggested that the Molloys join with other newly arrived settlers in forming a settlement near Cape Leeuwin. Late in April a group of prospective settlers, including the Molloys and Bussells, accompanied Stirling and his official party to the mouth of the Blackwood River and founded the settlement of Augusta. Governor Stirling appointed Captain Molloy Government Resident and Resident Magistrate for the settlement. In 1839 Captain Molloy was transferred to The Vasse as the area’s Government Magistrate and in May he and his family moved to their home “Fairlawn”, which was built in 1839.

His wife Georgiana was a keen botanist who is credited with identifying much local flora as well as the introduction of non-native species. When Georgiana died in 1843, Molloy stayed on at Busselton until 1850, when he returned to England. In March 1851 he resigned as Government Resident on the grounds of old age but then returned to Western Australia in 1852. On his return, he continued to be influential as Busselton's Magistrate and dealt with the arrival of convicts to the area.

In 1860 Molloy appointed a young Richard Gale to manage his property and Gale subsequently purchased Fairlawn when Molloy died on 6 October 1867. Molloy was buried alongside his wife in St Mary’s Anglican Church, Busselton.