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In 1848 the Assistant-Surveyor of New South Wales, Edmund Kennedy, led an expedition to explore Cape York Peninsula. Arriving at Rockingham Bay (north of Townsville) in May, Kennedy`s party, after much privation and toil, reached Weymouth Bay, where they established a depot. Kennedy, with four others, Costigan, Dunn, Luff, and an aboriginal, Jacky Jacky, left this depot in an endeavour to reach Cape York, where a relief ship was expected. Kennedy and Jacky Jacky continued north, after leaving the others at Shelburne Bay.
Only Jacky Jacky reached Cape York, for in a skirmish with blacks Kennedy was killed. Jacky Jacky guided the ship`s relief party to Shelburne Bay, but Costigan, Dunn, and Luff had perished. At the Weymouth Bay depot, only two survivors were found. Source: Monument Australia |
Kennedy |
Edmund Kennedy (1818-1848) was born on Guernsey, one of the Channel Islands of the English channel. His father was a colonel in the British army. Kennedy was a surveyor and also a talented artist. He arrived in Sydney in 1840 where he joined the Surveyor-General's Department as an assistant to Sir Thomas Mitchell. Kennedy was to meet his death at the hands of hostile natives while trying to open up a route to the tip of the Cape York Peninsula.
Kennedy made many expeditions into unexplored areas of Queensland opening up many new areas. In 1845, he was second-in-command of an expedition led by Thomas Mitchell, when they discovered the Victoria River and rich grasslands in central Queensland. On another expedition in 1847, Kennedy discovered that the Victoria River did not flow into the Gulf as Mitchell thought, but was part of Coopers Creek. He renamed it the Barcoo River. Click the button to read more. |
Galmarra, known as Jackey Jackey was the real hero and the sole survivor of Edmund Kennedy’s exploration of Cape York Peninsula in 1848. The first leg of the expedition was to traverse along the east coast from Rockingham Bay (north of Hinchinbrook Island) to Albany Island at the tip of Cape York Peninsula. In the manner typical for the colonial period Jackey Jackey was known under his English nickname, no one bothered to learn about his real name and family. A reference to his homeland in the Muswellbrook area in Hunter Valley, suggests that he could have been a Wonnarua or Geawegal man.
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Jackey Jackey |
Enchanted Learning |
Edmund Kennedy (1818-1848) was an explorer and the Assistant-Surveyor of New South Wales, Australia. Kennedy explored the interior of Queensland, Australia, including the Thomson River, the Barcoo River, Cooper's Creek, and the Cape York Peninsula.
First Expedition: Kennedy was born on September 5, 1818, on the Island of Guernsey, in the Channel Islands. He emigrated from England to Sydney, Australia in 1840, becoming a land surveyor. His was chosen to be on Thomas Livingston Mitchell's expedition to the interior of Queensland. They left in November, 1845, to find an overland route to the Gulf of Carpenteria. The expedition failed, but they did discover the Victoria Stream (named by Mitchell), and returned to Sydney in January, 1847. Click the button to read more. |
QLD State LibraryEdmund Kennedy was one of the more important and well known of the explorers who, through their endeavours, added understanding and knowledge of the Cape York area, although his most famous expedition was to end tragically. Click the button to read more. |
Revolvy |
Kennedy explored the interior of Queensland and northern New South Wales, including the Thomson River, the Barcoo River, Cooper Creek, and Cape York Peninsula. Kennedy was born on 5 September 1818 on Guernsey in the Channel Islands to Colonel Thomas Kennedy (British Army) and Mary Ann (Smith) Kennedy. Kennedy died in December 1848 after being speared by Aborigines in far north Queensland near Cape York. Click the button to read more. |