Diary, 23 November 1843 – March 1844

Ludwig Leichhardt

Crossing the Continent

Ludwig Leichhardt arrived in Sydney in February 1842, aged twenty-eight, intending to explore the Australian inland. He was a meticulous observer, recording the peoples and natural environment of the places he visited. This diary entry includes his comprehensive documentation of an Aboriginal man and information about his language. Leichhardt was interested in the spread of different Aboriginal languages across Northern Australia: he regularly sought advice about his collecting activities from his Aboriginal guides.

Durundur Station, near present-day Woodford, Queensland, was about 65 kilometres northwest of Brisbane, and was owned by the Archer brothers. Leichhardt spent late 1843 and early 1844 there and in the district. In October 1844, he set out, with a party of nine, from the Darling Downs on his successful historic trek northwest to Port Essington, on the Coburg Peninsula, Northern Territory, a distance of 4828 kilometres. This made him a national hero, earning him the title ‘Prince of Explorers’.

It was on a later expedition, beginning in early 1848, attempting to cross the continent from the Darling Downs to the west coast and then south to the Swan River, that his party disappeared. No conclusive evidence about what happened has been found.
Display item Diary, 23 November 1843 – March 1844

 

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