Henry Hellyer

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Henry Hellyer (born 1790-2 September 1832) was a European explorer who was one of the first explorers to visit the rugged interior of the north west of Tasmania, Australia.

Hellyer was born in Hampshire, England. He was the third child out of eleven born to John Hellyer, a merchant. He worked as an architect and surveyor, and when the Van Diemens Land Company was formed in 1825 he was one of the first officers to sign on. His build was generally tall and thin.

He was the chief surveyor of the Van Diemens Land Company. Along with Richard Frederick and Isaac Cutts, he travelled from Circular Head to St Valentines Peak and back, in February 1827.

In 1831 he became the first European to reach the summit of Cradle Mountain.

He unexpectedly committed suicide on 2 September 1832.

Although Henry Hellyer had no descendants, his nephew William Hellyer migrated to New South Wales about 1838, and many Australian Hellyers are descended from him.

Hellyer Gorge, Hellyer River, and Hellyer College are named after him. There is also Hellyer Musesum in Burnie, Tasmania; and his journals are held in the Tasmanian State Library.