Reg has written extensively on various characters who have made a contribution to the history of Tasmania and beyond.
Andrew Inglis Clark
Father of Federation and the Hare Clark Voting System.
Betty King
Arriving with the First Fleet, Betty King was the first white woman to step foot in Australia.
Canadian / American Rebels in Van Diemen’s Land
In 1840, 93 Canadians and Americans, but mainly Americans, were transported as convicts to that place of penal servitude, Van Diemen’s Land
Catherine Wade
Catherine was an early Tasmanian pioneering woman.
Chubbie Miller
Chubbie Miller has now been virtually forgotten. Yet, she was the first woman to fly from England to Australia and the first to fly across Bass Strait
Lieutenant Governor David Collins
David Collins was the 1st Lieutenant Governor of Van Diemen’s Land (Tasmania)
Critchley Parker Junior
As a bushwalker, he had once proposed a Zionist Socialist settlement in the rugged beauty and remoteness of Port Davey on Tasmania’s south west coast to be the new Jerusalem for Jews, persecuted and exiled from Europe during World War II.
Dolly Dalrymple
Dolly was a half-caste Tasmanian aborigine. Having a white husband she made her life among the settlers. For her courageous actions, Governor Arthur gave her a grant of land. Dolly was certainly a pioneer for her people adjusting successfully to life in a new world.
General John Gellibrand
Major-General Sir John Gellibrand was an amazing son of Tasmania. He was what made this State and nation successful and would be one of the greatest Tasmanian heroes of the Great War. He was outspoken, loved Tasmania and was a man of high moral character.
George Adams
The history of Tattersall’s and TattsLotto can be traced back to George Adams.
H.B. Marriot Watson
Henry Brereton Marriott Watson (H.B. Marriott Watson) was a prolific author. His novels and collections of short stories gained him a reputation as one of the better and best-known writers of his time.
Irish Exiles to Van Diemen Land
These men were not convicts but rather political prisoners and comprised of John Mitchel, William Smith O’Brien, Thomas Francis Meagher, Terrence Bellew McManus, Patrick O’Donohoe, Kevin O’Doherty and John Martin.
John Batman
The Batman bridge over the Tamar River is named after John Batman and he is also recognised as the founder of Melbourne.
John Robertson
Tasmanian Police Trooper John (Jock) Roberson was tragically killed while on duty in a motorcycle accident involving a train.
Joseph Darling
Joseph ‘Joe’ Darling was an exceptional cricketer, captaining Australia in 18 Tests. Born in South Australia, he made further careers for himself in Tasmania as a politician and pastoralist.
Joseph Sweeney
“Private John Joseph Sweeney’s war service and execution is reasonably well documented. His story is familiar to military historians. To the general public at large, their fellow Tasmanian, it is not – and it is now time for it to be widely told – and for him to be exonerated.” – Reg. A. Watson.
Kenneth Hudspeth
Lieutenant Ken Hudspeth captained mini submarines during World War Two.
Matthew Brady
A Tasmanian Bush Ranger. Brady was considered a gentleman, who rarely robbed or insulted women.
Martin Cash
Martin Cash is considered another “gentleman” Bush Ranger.
Sammy Cox
First white man in Tasmania – fact or myth?
Sir Richard Dry
Certainly one of the most esteemed people in Tasmania’s history would be Sir Richard Dry. A philanthropist, he was a humane and understanding man. Although he knew great wealth, even though he went through very difficult financial periods, the general community loved him
Stuart Crosby Walch
Flight Lieutenant Stuart Crosby Walch was the only Tasmanian to die in the Battle of Britain along with twelve other Australians.
William and Margaret McIntyre
William Keverall McIntyre gynaecologist and Margaret Edgeworth McIntyre (1886- 1948), community worker and first women Tasmanian State parliamentarian were husband and wife.
William Porden Kay
William was many things; architect, surveyor, engineer and Tasmanian public servant. His legacy to Tasmania was his master piece, Tasmanian Government House.
William Paterson
Colonel William Paterson was the founder of Port Dalrymple on the West Tamar in Northern Tasmania in 1804. This colony and Sullivan’s Cove in the South amalgamated in 1811 on the orders of Lachlan Macquarie with the capital being established in the south.