John Wrathall Bull (1804 - 1886)

In 1998, the following reference was listed as a source in an Australian economics website:
Bull, John Wrathall. Early experiences of colonial life in South Australia. Adel.: Printed at the Advertiser, 1878. [pp.243-261 - Capt. Grey's government] Sp994.2T B935 + Z (2)
Roy Wrathall of Mytholmroyd mentioned the following:
I posted to the Australian newsgroup some time ago and got a reply from a descendant of John. Wrathall Bull became the surname from the marriage of the Reverend Bull and Elizabeth Wrathall, who I think was from London - at any rate they were married in that area.
Information from the BULL-L list re Elizabeth Wrathall, John Wrathall Bulls mother :
Elizabeth Wrathall married Rev John Bull on 2 Jul 1801 in Sutton in Ashfield. Elizabeth was buried in Clipston, northants 16 Nov 1837. JWB was born 23 june 1804 died in College Park a suburb of Adelaide on 21 sept 1886
Roy has more information at his Australian page We would also like to hear more via E-MAIL from John's descendants.

Kelly Dyer (née Sullivan) of Adelaide, South Australia, who can be reached at mitchkells(at)bigpond(dot)com has done considerable research on her great-great-great-grandfather John Wrathall Bull. Here are her introductory comments:
Having said you are interested in hearing about our side of the family, I wondered how I could get it to you. Not being very proficient with computers I have just had to provide a much condensed version, to show you my line of Wrathalls. As I said before, if you would like more info I would be happy to try and get it to you. There are many hundreds of descendants of Rev. John Bull and Elizabeth Wrathall, especially in Australia, where their children John Wrathall Bull, Joseph Bull, Lucy Bull, and George Bull migrated.
Click HERE to view Kelly's outline of her descendancy (last updated Sept. 19, 2004). Kelly has prepared a short biography of J.W. Bull; click HERE to read it.

In Apr 2000, Brian A.Tink of Canberra posted the following message at the GENANZ-L Archives :
..... A new book has been printed concerning the life of JWB and his development 
in South Australia of the Stripper.
I have just received a copy.
The title is: AS FINE A CROP Author Dawn Davis who is relative of JWB The book 
contains 183 pages
Inside the first pages is a chart of the descendants of the Rev. John Bull [1777-1852]. 
This chart details the children of the Rev John and his wife Elizabeth Wrathall 
[which includes JWB]. It also shows the children of JWB. 
The book has 3 parts:
Part One: the lives of early settlers, JWB, Joseph Bull and Dr George Bull and includes 
the story of the invention of the stripper, the 150 years of controversy as to whether 
JWB or John Ridley invented it, and evidence proving JWB's case.
Part 2 The life of John Bowyer Bull
Part3 The antecedents and Descendants of Wrathal, Bull and Bowyer families.
Thomas Bull [1560] and Eleen Plymmer [16 generations]
Marmaduke Wrathall [1628-1707] [ first 7 generations]
William Bowyer [1791-1860]and Mary C Brant [ first 4 generations]
plus a number of photos, illustrations, etc.
In Feb. 2007, The Life Summary of John Wrathall Bull (Biography Author: H. J. Finnis) listed his birth in 1804 (St Pauls Cray, Kent, England) and his death in1886 at College Park, Adelaide, South Australia), along with several references and biographical data. In Mar. 2008, the State Library of South Australia had a biography, as well as photo of John Wrathall Bull (Mortlock Pictorial Collection B 984 h) ca.1880.

In Mar. 2008, Derek Wrathall supplied the following extract from the Leeds Mercury (Friday 14 Dec 1883) under the heading "Literature":
The volume in which Mr. John Wrathall Bull records his EXPERIENCES OF LIFE IN SOUTH AUSTRALIA is as interesting as it is unpretentious. Mr. Bull was amongst the earliest settlers in the new colony, and his "Experiences" cover the whole period of its rise and progress. They are eventful enough to be full of interest, and though the style is not that of a skilful writer, they are recorded in language which has the merit of being simple and graphic. Indeed, the book will be read with genuine pleasure by all who take it up. The reader is drawn from chapter to chapter with increasing interest as the story of the rise of the colony is told. In less than fifty years South Australia has risen from an almost unknown settlement to one of the first colonies of the empire, and it has before it a future full of promise. Those who want to know something about the colony without wading through a dry historical record, or pondering over a mere collection of tabular statements, cannot do better then read Mr. Bull's volume.
Kelly Sullivan referred to this volume in her biography of J.W. Bull.