William Stevenson was born in Jamaica in 1805.
William Stevenson was a barrister and became a British colonial administrator. He first served as superintendent of British Honduras from 1854–1857 before being appointed Governor of Mauritius in May 1857.
William Stevenson’s administration was highly praised. He adopted a more equitable system for the payment of the Civil Service and the salaries of the officials were raised with prosperous increments. Stevenson was regarded as an honest public figure who was highly esteemed by the planters’ society.
In 1859, William Stevenson founded the Powder Mills Orphan Asylum in Pamplemousses Village at the site of the Old Powder Mills. The purpose of the orphan asylum was to house Indian and African orphans; aged between 7 and 17, coming from Indian immigrants or the freed slave background. More than a hundred orphaned children were taken care of, educated and trained in industrial pursuits. It was important for William Stevenson to set up a place where children would be taken care of “to become useful members to the community”
Governor William Stevenson pressed the Secretary of State for the Colonies, that “Mauritians should be brought to appreciate liberal institutions and popular power for the purposes of government and legislation”. Although Stevenson’s advice was turned down; it paved out the way for Mauritius to obtain a constitution and an elective system under the helm of Governor Pope Hennessy.
In 1862 Governor Stevenson was invested as a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Sir William Stevenson died at Réduit in 1863 and was buried in Moka, Mauritius.
On 20June 1867, Public officials of the British colony erected a statue in the yard of the Government house in honour of Sir William Stevenson.