Henry James Emmett (1783-1848), public servant, was the eldest son of Henry Emmett of London and his wife, Grace West, nee Taylor. After seven years service at the War Office in England, he emigrated to Van Diemen's Land, arriving at Hobart Town in the Regalia in November 1819 with his wife Mary Thompson, nee Townsend, their six children, and a settler's letter of recommendation from his former chief