Johann Christian Henschke
Johann Christian Henschke, born on 24th December 1803, was one of many Silesians to flee their homeland in search of religious freedom. He departed from Kutschlau in the province of Brandenburg, and after an ill-fated 98-day voyage aboard the Skjold, arrived in South Australia on 27th October 1841. His wife Appolonia Wilhelmine (née Sparmann) and six-year-old Johann Friedrich Wilhelm died during the voyage and were buried at sea; nine-month-old Johanne Luise died while they were awaiting departure from Hamburg. Johann Christian's brother, Johann Martin, and his family also made the journey.
Upon arrival, with his two surviving children (Johann Gottlieb and Johann August), Johann Christian stayed briefly at Klemzig and Hahndorf, then settled for a time at Lobethal where he married Dorothea Elisabeth Schmidt. It appears that he worked as a wheelwright in Lobethal, as this is given as his occupation on church documents from this time. He settled at Krondorf village near Bethany in about 1847, where his house and outbuildings still stand today. In 1862 he purchased land in the North Rhine (later renamed Keyneton) district of the Barossa Range, so named because it was thought the area was capable of producing wines that would match Germany's best. He stayed on at Krondorf, initially travelling by foot to North Rhine, while he developed the property.
Johann Christian and his compatriots had been galvanised to settle by Englishman George Fife Angas who was largely responsible for founding the South Australian Company, formed with private funds to promote the new colony's agricultural settlement. Angas viewed the strong Lutheran faith of the Silesians, along with their probity and commitment to hard work on the land, as desirable traits for new settlers.
A farmer and mason by trade, Johann Christian built a small two-storey cellar into the side of the hill in time for the first vintage. With the help of his son Paul Gotthard he planted a small vineyard on the diverse farming property in the early 1860s, probably initially with the intention of making enough wine for consumption by family and relatives. The first vintage in 1868 was about a 300-gallon production, believed to be principally riesling and shiraz.