sketcher, teacher and clergyman, son of Thomas Wittenoom of London, was educated at Winchester and Oxford, then ordained minister of the Church of England. He became, in turn, rector at Southampton, lecturer at Brasenose College, Oxford, and headmaster of Newark Grammar School, Nottinghamshire (1813-28). His first wife Mary, née Teasdale, died in 1828. The following year Wittenoom was appointed chaplain to the new Swan River settlement (WA). Arriving at Fremantle in the Wanstead with his mother, sister and four sons on 30 January 1830, Wittenoom was the only Anglican clergyman in the colony from the middle of the year until 1836. He held services at Perth, Fremantle, Guildford and as far afield as Albany. During his travels he found time to make pencil and wash sketches of local scenes, including Front View of the Artist’s House (1832, Art Gallery of Western Australia).
Wittenoom established a Classical School in Perth and became a willing patron and participant in the cultural life of the colony. Mary Watson Helms became his second wife at Perth on 3 January 1839; they had two daughters and a son who died in infancy. Wittenoom died in Perth on 23 January 1855. After his death his widow and daughter ran Perth Girls’ School (1856-58).
- Writers:
- Chapman, Barbara
- Date written:
- 1992
- Last updated:
- 2011
