Watson, Ferguson and Company is the longest running printing company in Queensland, Australia and was established by John Watson and James Ferguson in the mid nineteenth century. [1]
John Watson
John Watson was born near Glasgow, Scotland around 1830 and, at the age of sixteen, left for Indiana, in the United States of America, prior to arriving in New South Wales, Australia in pursuit of gold. He eventually settled in Brisbane around 1859 were he operated a successful photographic studio until 1873. John Watson and his wife, Elizabeth Selim, died when the RMS Quetta was wrecked on the Far North Queensland coast in 1890. [2]
The Watsons had no children and certain conditions were in place in James Watson's will dependent on who survived the other. As the Watsons were seen falling into the water within sixty seconds of one another, it was difficult to determine who had predeceased each other in the wreck, and the courts became involved in establishing survivorship and determining who the beneficiaries of estate. The estate included the partnership property of Watson, Ferguson and Co. [3]
James Ferguson
James Ferguson was born in Ardentallan, Oban, Scotland on July 26 1839. He arrived in Australia on board 'The Great Britain', one of the earliest steamships travelling between the United Kingdom and Australia. After spending some time in Sydney, in 1870 he arrived in Brisbane to manage the printing business started by William Gowans in 1868. After William Gowan's death, James Ferguson took over the business, and renamed it Ferguson and Co. James Ferguson died on 24 April 1926. [4]
History (1871 - 1926)
In 1871 John Watson and James Ferguson went into partnership, renamed the business Watson, Ferguson and Company and significantly expanded the business at 69 Queen Street. In 1882, the company built a four storey building designed by Mr. Gailey on the site of the former Supreme Court Court buildings and opposite the site of their first store at 69 Queen Street. [5] The basement contained the printing and store while the upper storeys contain retail space, a wholesale area, office space and an area for artists engaged in engraving and illumination to work. [6] [7] When John and Elizabeth Watson died in 1890, James Ferguson became the sole principle. [8]
In 1914, the business built a large printery and bookbinding factory on the corner of Glenelg and Stanley Streets with the assistance of the Municipality of South Brisbane. [9] In 1930, the company was listed on the Australian Stock Exchange. [10]
Following the death of James Ferguson in 1926, his son Eric Abbott, took over as joint manager. [11]
References
- ^ "Who we are". Watson Ferguson and Company.
- ^ "MR. AND MRS. JOHN WATSON". The Queenslander. Vol. XXXVII, , no. 755. Queensland, Australia. 22 March 1890. p. 543. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "THE QUETTA DISASTER". Morning Bulletin. Vol. XLIII, , no. 8495. Queensland, Australia. 11 November 1890. p. 6. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "MR. JAMES FERGUSON". The Week. Vol. CI, , no. 2, 627. Queensland, Australia. 30 April 1926. p. 12. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "MESSRS. WATSON, FERGUSON, AND CO.'S ESTABLISHMENT". The Brisbane Courier. Vol. XXXIX, , no. 8, 325. Queensland, Australia. 15 September 1884. p. 6. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "MR. JAMES FERGUSON". The Week. Vol. CI, , no. 2, 627. Queensland, Australia. 30 April 1926. p. 12. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "MR. AND MRS. JOHN WATSON". The Queenslander. Vol. XXXVII, , no. 755. Queensland, Australia. 22 March 1890. p. 543. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "MR. JAMES FERGUSON". The Week. Vol. CI, , no. 2, 627. Queensland, Australia. 30 April 1926. p. 12. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) - ^ "WATSON, FERGUSON'S LIMITED FACTORY". The Brisbane Courier. No. 19, 814. Queensland, Australia. 23 July 1921. p. 12. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "WATSON, FERGUSON, & CO., LIMITED". Sunday Mail. No. 389. Queensland, Australia. 9 November 1930. p. 6. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.
- ^ "Business man dies, aged 73". The Courier-mail. No. 4443. Queensland, Australia. 22 February 1951. p. 5. Retrieved 27 November 2016 – via National Library of Australia.