John Melton Black

[1] Black immigrated to Melbourne where he made his fortune, not by mining gold but by establishing a business as a carrier.

However, harsh conditions forced him and many others to surrender their lands to the banks as they were unable to meet their heavy mortgage commitments.

Then aged 34, he became general manager for Robert Towns' pastoral interests, which included Fanning, Woodstock, Inkerman, Jarvisfield and other large holdings.

[1] The new work of forming a port at Cleveland Bay and the establishment of the settlement of Townsville was undertaken by a partnership of Towns and Black.

He was a stockman, merchant, surveyor, newspaper editor and pioneer of the meat industry in Townsville and surrounding districts.

[1] Black left Townsville at the end of the year 1867, and his loss was keenly felt by the residents of North Queensland.

[1] On Sunday 1 November 1964, a monument commemorating the "100th Anniversary of Settlement in Townsville" was unveiled on The Strand, with particular mention made of four men: Robert Towns, Andrew Ball, Mark Watt Reid and John Melton Black.

This Wikipedia article contains text from John Melton Black by W. J. Doherty published in the Townsville Daily Bulletin on 10 July 1934 page 7 (public domain in Australia via Trove).