- Henry Lidgbird Ball
Henry Lidgbird Ball (1756-1818) was a
Royal Navy officer, best known for discovering and exploringLord Howe Island .In 1788, having previously commanded HMS "Supply", Lieutenant Ball commanded the vessel entrusted with shipping the first group of settlers from
Botany Bay toNorfolk Island .Between 1788 and 1790, Ball explored the area around
Port Jackson and took part in the capture of the Aborigine,Arabanoo , on31 December 1788, in addition to revisiting Lord Howe's Island and Norfolk Island.After falling ill in January 1791, Ball returned to
England to convalesce. LeavingAustralia in November 1791, he landed atPlymouth in April 1792 with the firstkangaroo to be shipped to England on board his ship.Ball returned to duty in December 1792 and was made a captain in 1795, in which position he served with distinction between 1795 and 1812, when he went on to
half pay in semi-retirement. On4 June 1814 Ball was promoted to rear admiral of the Blue.Ball married on
17 June 1802 in London to Charlotte Foster. She died a year later and, on19 July 1810 at Kingston-upon-Thames, he married for a second time, to Anne Georgianna Henrietta Johnston. Ball had one daughter, Ann Maria.Ball died on
22 October 1818 in Surrey, England.Ball's Pyramid , Mount Lidgbird, Ball's Bay and Ball's Head in Sydney Harbour are all named after him.External links
* [http://nla.gov.au/nla.pic-an4549405 Silhouette picture of Ball] , at the
National Library of Australia * Vivienne Parsons, 'Ball, Henry Lidgbird (1756 - 1818)' in "Australian Dictionary of Biography", Vol. 1, Melbourne University Press (1966)
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