William Hixon McDonald (senior)

William Hixon McDonald (senior) (1815-1869) was an Australian soldier-settler, who was amongst the first gold miners at Corindhap, Victoria.

The family was first stationed at "Malcolm’s Huts" near Richmond, then Port Arthur, before being sent to a more permanent posting at Green Ponds (now known as Kempton) in August 1839.

McDonald purchased his discharge from the army in 1842 and in 1847 joined other ‘over-straiters’, taking his family to Victoria, where they settled on a small farming selection at Freshwater Creek, Duneed, south of Geelong.

[3] McDonald, and his son, William (junior), were among the first miners at the Break o’Day diggings during the Victorian gold rush.

All members of the McDonald family eventually settled at Corindhap, the town which sprang up at Break o’Day.