Early Merchant Families of Sydney : Speculation and Risk Management on the Fringes of Empire

Establishing business enterprise in a tiny, remote penal settlement appears to defy the principles of sustainable demand and supply. Yet early Sydney attracted a number of business entrepreneurs, including Campbell, Riley and Walker. If the development of private enterprise in early colonial Australia is counterintuitive, an understanding of its rationale, nature and risk strategies is the more imperative. This book traces the development of private enterprise in Australia through a study of the antecedents, connections and commercial activities of early Sydney merchants.