"Gulf at the end of September 1861. After finding traces of the explorers, the Queensland Relief Expedition disembarked and the vessel returned to Melbourne. After disembarking from the ""Victoria"" in November, the Queensland Relief Expedition under the leadership of William Landsborough searched the gulf coast for the missing expedition. Later it turned south and continued until it arrived in Melbourne in October 1862. Having crossed Australia from north to south, the expedition was awarded the £2000 prize for the first successful crossing of the continent. Frederick Walker led the Victorian Relief Expedition. The party, consisting of twelve mounted men, seven"
"became the Royal Society of Victoria. The Burke and Wills expedition was led by Robert O'Hara Burke, who was a superintendent of police in the Castlemaine district when, in 1860, he was given leave to take command of the exploring expedition to cross the continent from south to north. The objectives of the expedition were hazy and its route, from Cooper's Creek to the Gulf of Carpentaria, was decided less than a month before it set out. Burke's instructions, sent after him because they were not ready at the time, were incoherent. The real object of the expedition appears to"
"1840s, but explorers remained ambitious to discover new lands for agriculture or answer scientific enquiries. Surveyors also acted as explorers and the colonies sent out expeditions to discover the best routes for lines of communication. The size of expeditions varied considerably from small parties of just two or three to large, well-equipped teams led by gentlemen explorers assisted by smiths, carpenters, labourers and Aboriginal guides accompanied by horses, camels or bullocks. In 1860, the ill-fated Burke and Wills led the first north-south crossing of the continent from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria. Lacking bushcraft and unwilling to learn from"
"first north-south crossing of the continent. On 20 August 1860, a large crowd in Melbourne provided a farewell for the explorers. The party comprised fifteen men, twenty-six Indian camels with their drivers, packhorses, wagons, food and supplies. In early October the party reached Menindee on the Darling River. Burke had already begun to shed baggage, determined to travel light and fast, leaving behind much of the equipment and some provisions at Balranald. Burke left more provisions at Menindee. He also quarrelled with Landells, who subsequently resigned. Burke promoted Wills to second-in-charge and engaged local man William Wright as third officer."
"parties of just two or three to large, well equipped teams led by gentlemen explorers assisted by smiths, carpenters, labourers and Aboriginal guides accompanied by horses, camels or bullocks. In 1860, the ill-fated Burke and Wills led the first north-south crossing of the continent from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria. Lacking bushcraft and unwilling to learn from the local Aboriginal people, Burke and Wills died in 1861, having returned from the Gulf to their rendez-vous point at Coopers Creek only to discover the rest of their party had departed the location only a matter of hours previously. Though an"
"the south to the north coasts, map it, and collect scientific data and specimens. At that time, most of the interior of Australia had not been explored by the European settlers and was unknown to them. In 1860–61, Robert O'Hara Burke and William John Wills led the expedition of 19 men with that intention, crossing Australia from Melbourne in the south, to the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north, a distance around 2,000 miles. Three men ultimately travelled over 3,000 miles from Melbourne to the shores of the Gulf of Carpentaria and back to the Depot Camp at Cooper Creek."
"European to ascend Australia's highest peak, which he named Mount Kosciuszko in honour of the Polish patriot Tadeusz Kosciuszko. The competition to chart a route for the Australian Overland Telegraph Line spurred a number of cross-continental expeditions. Perhaps the most famous of these was the Burke and Wills expedition led by Robert O'Hara Burke and William John Wills who in 1860–61 led a well equipped expedition from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria. Due to an unfortunate run of bad luck, oversight and poor leadership, Burke and Wills both died on the return trip. Expeditions (in chronological order): Other explorers"
"land into its territory. The Victorian Exploring Expedition was posthumously renamed the ""Burke and Wills Expedition"". The expedition involved 19 men, 26 camels, 23 horses, and several supply wagons. The expedition was led by Robert Burke, an Irish superintendent, who was ""...a product of that heroic age of empire which believed that a gentleman of good breeding with a confident military manner and an impressive beard must make an effective leader"". Burke was a hot tempered man known for his penchant for gambling and the opposite sex. Burke's prowess did not extend to the field of exploration and was notorious"
"position because of the skills he possessed as a result of attending the Royal Naval School and the experience gained in the Royal Navy. Georg von Neumayer was director of the observatory and William John Wills was a work companion. Neumayer was a member of the organising committee of the ill-fated Burke and Wills expedition, which set out in August 1860 to cross Australia from South to North. Wills was appointed surveyor and astronomical and meteoroligal observer for the expedition. When, after 6 months, nothing was heard from the expedition, the Victorian Relief Expedition was organised and set out on"
"in 1860 on their journey across Australia from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria. They arrived on Saturday, 25 August 1860 and made Camp VI, (their sixth camp since leaving Melbourne). Sunday was taken as a rest day when the men caught up on chores and they left on Monday morning. The road from Lancefield to Mia Mia via Ben Loch and the Great Dividing Range is now called 'The Burke and Wills Track'. In 2010 the town erected a small monument to the expedition to mark the sesquicentennary of their visit. Mia Mia, Victoria Mia Mia is a picturesque"
"police superintendent in the Castlemaine, Victoria district. In 1860 he was given leave to take command of the exploring expedition to cross the continent from Melbourne in the south to the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north. The objectives of the expedition were hazy and its route, from Cooper Creek to the Gulf of Carpentaria, was decided less than a month before it set out. Burke's instructions, sent after him because they were not ready at the time, were lengthy and vague. The real object of the expedition appears to have been to snatch from the South Australian explorer, John"
"expedition to use camels as a main form of transport was the Burke and Wills expedition in 1860. The Victorian Government imported 24 camels for the expedition. The first Muslim cameleers arrived on 9 June 1860 at Port Melbourne from Kurrachee on the ship the ""Chinsurah"", to participate in the Burke and Wills expedition. As described by the Victorian Exploration Expedition Committee, ""the camels would be comparatively useless unless accompanied by their native drivers"". The cameleers on the expedition included 45-year-old Dost Mahomed, who was bitten by a bull camel losing permanent use of his right arm, and Esa (Hassam)"
"Expedition, commonly known as the ""Wilkes Expedition,"" included naturalists, botanists, a mineralogist, taxidermists, artists and a philologist, and it was carried by (780 tons) and (650 tons), the brig (230 tons), the store-ship , and two schooners, (110 tons) and (96 tons). Departing from Hampton Roads on August 18, 1838, the expedition stopped at the Madeira Islands and Rio de Janeiro; visited Tierra del Fuego, Chile, Peru, the Tuamotu Archipelago, Samoa, and New South Wales; from Sydney, Australia sailed into the Antarctic Ocean in December 1839 and reported the discovery ""of an Antarctic continent west of the Balleny Islands"" of"
"the ""Victorian Exploring Expedition"". Only two members of the Committee, Ferdinand von Mueller and Wilhelm Blandowski, had any experience in exploration but due to factionalism both were consistently outvoted. Several people were considered for the post of leader and the Society held a range of meetings in early 1860. Robert O'Hara Burke was selected by committee ballot as the leader, and William John Wills was recommended as surveyor, navigator and third-in-command. Burke had no experience in exploration and it is strange that he was chosen to lead the expedition. Burke was an Irish-born ex-officer with the Austrian army, and later"
"to observe and even attempted to learn from the Yandruwandha. Wills began a list of words, King communicated over food-gathering and shelter. Even in Burke's final days however he remained suspicious and hostile to the Aboriginal people, attacking Aboriginal men carrying gifts of fish in nets. Despite such provocations, the Yandruwandha continued to act in a measured way towards the Europeans. The extreme conditions encountered by the explorers in the outback together with their failing health eventually resulted in the deaths of Burke and Wills. On 26 June 1861 Wills became severely ill; his rapidly declining condition caused Burke and"
"expedition leader Robert O'Hara Burke and surveyor William John Wills ventured further north in an attempt to reach the Gulf coast. During their occupation of the site, the party blazed 15 trees to mark its location. A search party led by Frederick Walker arrived in the area 11 months later, on 8 January 1862, and also established a camp on a small seasonal lagoon near Burke and Wills' Camp B/CXIX. Walker's expedition blazed a tree to record the location of their camp approximately north of Burke and Wills' Camp B/CXIX. Inspired by the prevailing interest in the sciences and exploration,"
"supernumeries John Osborne and Edwin James Welch. Robert O'Hara Burke was appointed leader of the Victorian Exploring Expedition with George James Landells as second-in-command. Wills was appointed third-in-command, surveyor, astronomical and meteorological observer in July 1860 on a salary of £300 a year. The expedition left Melbourne on Monday, 20 August 1860 with a total of 19 men, 27 camels and 23 horses. They reached Menindee on 16 October 1860 where Landells resigned following an argument with Burke. Wills was promoted to second-in-command. Burke split the expedition at Menindee and the lead party reached Cooper Creek on 11 November 1860"
"the local Aboriginal people, Burke and Wills died in 1861, having returned from the Gulf to their rendezvous point at Coopers Creek only to discover the rest of their party had departed the location only a matter of hours previously. Though an impressive feat of navigation, the expedition was an organisational disaster which continues to fascinate the Australian public. In 1862, John McDouall Stuart succeeded in traversing Central Australia from south to north. His expedition mapped out the route which was later followed by the Australian Overland Telegraph Line. Uluru and Kata Tjuta were first mapped by Europeans in 1872"
"the town’s Darling River wharf was very active as paddle-steamers, carried wool from north-western NSW and south-western Queensland travelling through the port on its way to South Australia. The Burke and Wills expedition passed through Pooncarie on their journey across Australia from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria. They reached the Darling River near Tarcoola Station to the south of town on Wednesday, 26 September 1860 and the next day made Camp XXX, (their thirtieth camp since leaving Melbourne) at what is now Bilbarka Park. The expedition stayed here until the morning of 11 October 1860 when they headed north"
"land it crossed. In 1862 monuments were erected in Back Creek Cemetery, Bendigo, and also on the hill overlooking Castlemaine where Burke had been stationed before leading the expedition. The Victorian towns of Beechworth and Fryerstown also unveiled memorials. In 1867 Ballarat erected the Explorer's Fountain on Sturt and Lydiard Streets. Wills, his brother Tom and their father, Dr William Wills, had all lived in Ballarat. In 1890 a monument was erected at Royal Park, the expedition's departure point in Melbourne. The plaque on the monument states: In 1983 they were honoured on a postage stamp depicting their portraits issued"
"In 1860, Robert O'Hara Burke and William John Wills began an expedition from Melbourne to the Gulf of Carpentaria to explore large areas of inland Australia which remained completely unknown to the European settlers. A pivotal meeting place or depôt camp used by the expedition was located at Bullah Bullah Waterhole on Cooper Creek. After failing to reach the northern coastline due to the mangrove swamps of the Flinders River delta the party of four set off for the return journey short on supplies. Charles Gray died on the way leaving three of the party who eventually managed to return"
"Landsborough's Blazed Tree (Camp 67) Landsborough's Blazed Tree (Camp 67) is a heritage-listed tree at Mitchell Highway, Charleville, Shire of Murweh, Queensland, Australia. It was marked by William Landsborough. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 18 June 2009. The blazed tree at Camp 67 just south of Charleville was marked during William Landsborough's 1862 expedition south from the Gulf of Carpentaria in search of cross-continent explorers Robert O'Hara Burke and William John Wills. Burke and Wills, who had set out from Melbourne on 20 August 1860 to cross the continent from south to north, were reported missing"
"McDouall Stuart, the honour of making the first south-north crossing of the continent. Sir Henry Barkly, Governor of Victoria 1856–1863, described it as ""the glorious race across the continent between the expeditions fitted out in this and the adjacent colony of South Australia"". The Burke and Wills expedition was the most expensive in the history of Australian exploration. It cost over £60,000 and would eventually claim seven lives. The expedition was provided with more than two dozen camels, imported complete with cameleers. There were horses and wagons, food for two years and lavish equipment. The party consisted of five officers:"
"made slow progress at first. After dividing the party at Menindee on the Darling River Burke made good progress, reaching Cooper Creek at the beginning of summer. The expedition established a depot camp at the Cooper, and Burke, Wills and two other men pushed on to the north coast (although swampland stopped them from reaching the northern coastline). The return journey was plagued by delays and monsoon rains, and when they reached the depot at Cooper Creek, they found it had been abandoned just hours earlier. Burke and Wills died on or about 30 June 1861. Several relief expeditions were"
"escorted by the naval steamship HMCSS ""Victoria"" from Brisbane in late August 1861. During the voyage around to the Gulf, Landsborough's team survived shipwreck and mutiny on one of the Great Barrier Reef islands. On 1 October the party of four whites and four aborigines arrived by ship at the mouth of the Albert River at the site of current Burketown. Landsborough's party of five men started their first search for Burke and Wills on 16 November 1862, travelling south-west in the direction of Central Mount Stuart. He discovered and traced the Gregory River to its source, then skirted the"
"example of the processes associated with early European exploration of Australia. The aims of the expedition cover the breadth of factors that motivated exploration in the 19th century and demonstrate a common theme in the field of exploration whereby individual expeditions, often composed of many men, are remembered and named exclusively after the leaders that commanded them. The Burke and Wills Expedition provides important insights into the 19th century European attitude towards the Australian environment and its Indigenous peoples. The expedition is a rare example of a large-scale expedition that relied substantially on public subscriptions for funding. The expedition resulted"
"not related to his contemporary, surveyor and explorer Stephen King, a participant in John McDouall Stuart's successful 1861–1862 expedition. John King (explorer) John King (15 December 1838 – 15 January 1872) was an Irish soldier who achieved fame as an Australian explorer. He was the sole survivor of the four men from the ill-fated Burke and Wills expedition who reached the Gulf of Carpentaria. The expedition was the first to cross Australia from south to north, finding a route across the continent from Melbourne in Victoria to the Gulf of Carpentaria in Queensland. He was born at Moy in County"
"John King (explorer) John King (15 December 1838 – 15 January 1872) was an Irish soldier who achieved fame as an Australian explorer. He was the sole survivor of the four men from the ill-fated Burke and Wills expedition who reached the Gulf of Carpentaria. The expedition was the first to cross Australia from south to north, finding a route across the continent from Melbourne in Victoria to the Gulf of Carpentaria in Queensland. He was born at Moy in County Tyrone, Ireland on 15 December 1838 to Henry King (d.1839) and Ellen Orn (d. September 1847). King was the"
"Burke, Landells as second-in-command, and William John Wills, third-in-command and surveyor and meteorologist and the two German scientific officers: Becker and Hermann Beckler, medical officer and botanist. The expedition also included a foreman, nine assistants and the camel-drivers. The expedition left Melbourne on 20 August 1860 and made progress through the settled districts of Victoria to Swan Hill and Balranald and reached Menindee on the Darling River at the beginning of October. Burke was in haste and left much of his provisions at Balranald and more at Menindee. Becker, as artist, naturalist and geologist on a salary of £300, received"
"a long boat in a search for fresh water. Having followed a bumper wet season Stokes was greeted by endless grassy plains, which he named ""The Plains of Promise"" after a day of exploration. The area was originally named for the 'Plains of Promise' or 'Province of Albert' after Prince Albert, the Queen's Consort in 1841. Burketown was named in honour of explorer Robert O'Hara Burke, who died shortly after making the first recorded successful south-north crossing of the continent in 1860-1. The first European settlers arrived in the local region not long after Burke and partner William John Wills'"
"Landsborough's Blazed Tree (Camp 69) Landsborough's Blazed Tree (Camp 69) is a heritage-listed blazed tree at Mitchell Highway, Bakers Bend, Shire of Murweh, Queensland, Australia. It was marked by William Landsborough. It was added to the Queensland Heritage Register on 18 June 2009. The blazed tree at Camp 69 south of Charleville was marked during William Landsborough's 1862 expedition south from the Gulf of Carpentaria in search of cross-continent explorers Robert O'Hara Burke and William John Wills. Burke and Wills, who had set out from Melbourne on 20 August 1860 to cross the continent from south to north, were reported"
"Van Diemen's Land, the crew included two people with close family connections to explorers of Australia who also died tragically. Cmdr Henry Le Vesconte was the first cousin of William John Wills, the co-leader of the 1861 Burke and Wills expedition, the first to cross the Australian mainland from south to north; both Burke and Wills perished on the return journey. William Gibson, a steward on HMS ""Terror"", was the elder brother of Alfred Gibson, who disappeared on an 1874 expedition led by Ernest Giles to cross the deserts of Western Australia from east to west, and was honoured in"
"to raise a lyrebird chick and sent sketches of the egg to ornithologists in Germany and France. He illustrated botanical works for Ferdinand Mueller including ""Fragmenta phytographiae Australiae"" (1858–82) and ""The Plants Indigenous to the Colony of Victoria"" (1860–65). His scientific knowledge and artistic ability qualified him for selection as a member of the Victorian Exploring Expedition in 1860–61, which has since become known as the Burke and Wills expedition. It was organised by the Philosophical Institute of Victoria which in 1860 became the Royal Society of Victoria. The Burke and Wills expedition was led by Robert O'Hara Burke, a"