Granville William Chetwynd Stapylton (1800-1840) was appointed an assistant surveyor in New South Wales in November 1828. He carried out a number of difficult surveys near Sydney and in 1831 was with a party which traced the Abercrombie River from Bathurst towards the Lake George area. In 1833 his work found favour with the surveyor-general, (Sir) Thomas Mitchell. In 1834 he was praised by the Colonial Office and recommended to Governor (Sir) Richard Bourke for promotion. In 1836 Stapylton was appointed second-in-command of Mitchell's overland expedition to Australia Felix.