Bowen – Tales from the Quarterdeck

The Peruvian’s Lone Survivor

There is a modest memorial standing in the Bowen Cemetery in North Queensland dedicated to James Morrill who died on 30 October 1865. The plaque credits him as a sailor who had survived the loss of his ship and subsequently lived with the local Aborigines for the next seventeen years. The 22-year-old Morrill sailed fromContinue reading “The Peruvian’s Lone Survivor”

The Tragedy behind the Gothenburg Medals

In September 1875 three men were honoured by the South Australian Government for the courage they displayed when the Gothenburg sank with fearsome loss of life. James Fitzgerald, John Cleland and Robert Brazil risked their lives to save themselves and the remaining survivors from the ill-fated steamer. While steaming from Darwin to Adelaide, the GothenburgContinue reading “The Tragedy behind the Gothenburg Medals”