198 years ago on June 21 1822, Alexander Berry with a small party on the 15-ton cutter "Blanch" sailed from Sydney to Shoalhaven to establish the first European settlement in the district at Coolangatta.

Born on St. Andrew's Day 1781, Berry completed elementary education at Cupar, before enrolling to study medicine at St. Andrew's University in 1797 - the same year George Bass coined the phrase, "Shoals Haven".

While at university, he heard of the exploits of Horatio Nelson, which led him to consider a life at sea.

Berry accepted a commission as ship's surgeon with the East India Company. After voyages to China and India, he decided to pursue a life in commerce.

Berry purchased a 520-ton ship which he renamed City of Edinburgh, and loaded it with provisions for Australia after the food shortages of 1806-7.

The ship was twice dismasted in storms before being diverted to Van Diemen's Land (Tasmania).

After disposing of most of the cargo, he arrived in Sydney in January 1808, with mainly spirits.

Governor Bligh was angry; he believed he had first call on the provisions for use in the colony, but he was deposed shortly afterwards, and Berry continued to trade with Australia.

In the period 1815-19, Berry lived in England with business partner Edward Wollstonecraft, and his sister Elizabeth who would become Berry's wife in 1827.

The partners chartered a vessel in 1819 to bring further cargo to Sydney, and it proved to be a profitable venture.

They subsequently bought a house and store in Lower George Street, and Berry went back to England to enlarge their connections.

By the time Berry returned in 1821, Wollstonecraft had 524 acres of land on the North Shore, as part of the 2000 acres promised by Governor Macquarie.

Early in 1822, Berry went with Hamilton Hume to explore the coastline south of Sydney, after which he successfully applied for the grant adjacent to the Shoalhaven River.

While an overseer looked after Coolangatta, Berry and his partner alternated between the estate and Sydney until Wollstonecraft's death in 1832.

Deciding he needed more help in Shoalhaven, Berry wrote to Scotland, urging his brothers and sisters to migrate.

At first reluctant to come, his brothers, John, William and David, and two of his three sisters, Janet and Nancy joined Alexander at Coolangatta in 1836.

All five lived on the estate until they died, none having married.

By 1841, Alexander and his wife Elizabeth had moved from Crow's Nest Cottage into a more commodious home.

They made plans for something grander, to be called Crow's Nest House, but Elizabeth died in 1845, before it was completed.

Throughout the 1850s, Alexander lived a solitary life in Sydney, but wrote frequently to David, instructing him on how to run the estate.

He frequently found fault and rarely praised his brother.