John macarthur wool pioneer biography for kids today

John Macarthur — 10 April was a British army officer , entrepreneur, politician, architect and pioneer of settlement in Australia.

What is john macarthur famous for

Macarthur is recognised as the pioneer of the wool industry that was to boom in Australia in the early 19th century and become a trademark of the nation. Macarthur was born near Plymouth, England the second son of Alexander Macarthur, who had fled to the West Indies after the Jacobite rising of before returning and working as a linen draper and 'seller of slops', according to some accounts.

His exact date of birth is unknown, but it is known that his birth was registered on 3 September He spelled his surname " M'Arthur " for most of his life. He often varied it to "MacArthur". The spelling "Macarthur" with a lower case "a" became established only very late in his life. John and Elizabeth Macarthur married on October and they subsequently sailed to the new colony after John joined the New South Wales Corps in Elizabeth gave birth to a daughter on the voyage to the new colony but the baby did not survive.

The war ended before the regiment was ready to sail and was disbanded in On half-pay, Macarthur went to live on a farm near Holsworthy in Devon, where he evidently pursued a program of self-education and became interested in 'rural occupations'. During the next five years Macarthur used his spare time to travel, read, and perhaps contemplate a future at the bar.