Australia
There is some conjecture about the first European birth to occur on Australian soil, but William Nash is the prime candidate. His father, also William, was a Marine private and his mother was Maria Haynes, who came as his common-law wife (they were not married until later). There are biographical entries on both parents in The Founders of Australia: A Biographical Dictionary of the First Fleet, by Mollie Gillen, published in 1989 (pp. 261–262). The book also lists those who were born on the voyage. William Nash was baptised on 25 May 1788 (his actual birth date is unknown), and died on 19 June 1789. On the New South Wales Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages Historical Indexes, his registry number is "1A/1788", which indicates that his is the first entry for 1788 (although not necessarily proving that his was the first birth).
Governor Phillip's reports were published in The Historical Records of Australia Series 1 Volume 1, but there is no mention of the first birth in the colony; on 12 February 1790, he simply states the number of births (59) and deaths (72) that had occurred to date. Unless further records are discovered, it will probably never be known definitely who was the "first born", but William Nash is the most likely.
Read more about this topic: First White Child
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