Postcard, Melbourne, Swanston Street, C.1972
One of Melbourne's major thoroughfares, Swanston Street was named after Charles Swanston (11 December 1789 – 5 September 1850) a Scottish born soldier, merchant, banker, and politician, and a financial backer of the Port Phillip Association. Swanston had arrived in Van Diemen's Land in 1829 after a successful and adventurous career in the private army of the British East India Company. He made his fortune through investments in Tasmanian real estate, in import-export businesses in tea, rum and wool and through a controlling interest in the Derwent Savings Bank. In 1835 a group of Hobart investors, including Swanston, formed the Port Phillip Association to explore and acquire land in Port Phillip District with Swanston acting as the syndicate's banker. In 1835 John Batman's expedition landed at Port Phillip and claimed to have bought 2400 km² including the future sites of Melbourne and Geelong under a document called Batman's treaty. Although the treaty was not recognised in either London or Sydney, a colony was soon established and Swanston would become a leading landowner in the Melbourne, Geelong and Western Districts regions. He died in 1850 while returning from brief visit to California and was buried at sea.
This image shows the street named after him, Swanston Street on which such important civic buildings including Melbourne Town Hall, The State Library (and Museum) and RMIT.