Ham was born in November 1830, in Cornwall, England.[2]
Victorian enterprises
He migrated to Victoria in 1849 and spent two years farming at Indented Head. He then went to the Victorian goldfields, where he amassed a fortune, partly through gold prospecting and partly through establishing businesses such as store keeping, butchering and saw-milling, at various diggings.[2]
In 1861, he settled in Ballarat as a land agent, auctioneer and stock broker.[2]
Hame was elected to the Victorian Legislative Council in 1886 and remained in the Council until its reduction in size in 1904, after which he retired.[1][2]
Later life
Ham died at Queenscliff, Victoria, on 3 January 1908, from pneumonia, as the result of a chill he caught when bathing.[1][2][3]