Note: He was in his 14th. year when he reached South Australia in 1846 by the "Pauline" from Bremen, Germany on 27 Sep 1846 & his first home with parents & brother Louis & half sister Agnes was at Tanunda. In the 1850s when he was in his 20s he went to the Bendigo gold fields & with his brother Louis commenced a garden & dairy there & also traded between Bendigo & Adelaide. What his occupation was between 1858 & 1863 when he married is not now known. He was 30 & his bride Frederike Gerloff was 22, according to their marriage certificate. As he was born in 1832 his birthday must have been either in November or December. It was about this time that his father Daniel transferred the licence of the "Wellington Inn" at Currie St.Adelaide to William.
William's actual period as licensee was 1863-65. When he left the hotel the patrons presented him with an inscribed silver snuff box. This was in the possession of Edwin Hurd Kernot of North Adelaide in 1968. He offered it to direct descendant Bill Muller via Eunice Stevenson, the present writer, if Bill would call on him so he could judge for himself if Bill was "a suitable person to own it". Bill declined this inspection so it must have remained with the Kernot daughters.
William went next to the "Commercial" Hotel, Gawler from 1866 to 1875 & from there to the Booyoolie "Commercial" until 1883. He owned two sections of land at Booyoolie, numbers 197 & 256 & part sections 192 & 261. During this period he also held the licence of the "Star & Garter" at Sturt Street, Adelaide. He purchased the freehold of the Gladstone Hotel at the corner of Port Street (No.5) & Gladstone Street (No.2) & over lapping the Booyoolie licence he again held that of the Gawler "Commercial" 1880-1893.
Both William & his eldest son H.W.A. ("Oddie") had town houses. William at 58 Second Avenue St.Peters (then called East Adelaide) & H.W.A. at Ruthven Street, Kensington. William retired c.1894 & persuaded H.W.A. to leave his position as Manager at Bass the jeweller at Adelaide & take over the Gladstone Hotel & at the same time to exchange their town houses complete with contents.
William's previous town house was at Magill Road, Norwood where his first wife Frederike, died aged 36 in 1878 & he remarried Louisa Schelgel c.1879. She survived William & married Henry Pound at her house at Salop Street, Kensington, on Nov. 11th. 1901. After Henry's death, & following the First World War she returned to Germany, taking with her the considerable fortune she had inherited from William in 1898.
GLADSTONE - Profound regret was felt here when it became known that on Decem-ber 13th. Mr. William Muller had died at Kensington. The deceased was for many years the landlord of the "Commercial" Hotel, Gladstone & was respected by all for his commercial integrity & his large heartedness. Interred at the Payneham Cemetery.