125 stories for 125 years

Joseph Bosisto

Born in Cookham, Berkshire in 1827, Joseph Bosisto was a pharmaceutical chemist who arrived in Adelaide from England in 1848.

Encouraged by the famous Victorian Government botanist Baron Ferdinand von Mueller, he set up the first commercial eucalyptus oil distillery on the banks of the Dandenong Creek. He soon set up other distilleries at Emerald, Menzies Creek and Macclesfield.

Joseph was probably the earliest manufacturer of essential oils in Australia on a commercial scale and gave special attention to the manufacture of eucalyptus oil. He was elected to the Victorian Legislative Assembly twice, serving 1874 to 1889 and 1892 to 1894. He was mayor of Richmond from 1865 to 1867. Bosisto’s Lane still exists today in Richmond and is lasting testimony to the birthplace of his business and his many achievements. Through Exhibitions Commissions and Royal Commissions, he exercised considerable influence over the direction, manufacture and utilisation of products from indigenous vegetation.

Joseph was one of the founders of the Pharmaceutical Society of Victoria in 1857, being its vice-president. He was largely responsible for the passage of both the Sale and Use of Poisons Act 1876 and the Pharmacy Act 1876 that created the Pharmacy Board of Victoria, becoming its inaugural president in 1877 and relinquishing the post in 1882 under pressure of other engagements. He was appointed examiner in materia medica, a post he held until his death in 1898.

Bosisto’s Eucalyptus Oil was awarded five bronze medals at the London Colonial and Indian Exhibition and is still a household name today, over 150 years later. Joseph was created CMG by Queen Victoria in London in 1886. He helped to establish the Victorian College of Pharmacy and was made an honorary member of the Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain.