Tag Archives: Rossel Island

The Loss of the Saint Paul and its Horrific Aftermath– 1858

In September 1858 the French ship Saint Paul was wrecked off Rossel Island east of New Guinea with as many as 370 people on board.    Of those, fewer than a dozen men escaped with their lives.   One of whom was Narcisse Pelletier who escaped to Cape York and lived with the Uutaalnganu people for theContinue reading “The Loss of the Saint Paul and its Horrific Aftermath– 1858”

Narcisse Pelletier: An Extraordinary Tale of Survival.

In April 1875 the pearling schooner John Bull’s crew happened upon a man clearly of European heritage living with a group of Aborigines on Cape York Peninsula.      Mistakenly thinking that the man was being held against his will, they took him onboard their vessel and delivered him to the Government outpost at Somerset.    His nameContinue reading “Narcisse Pelletier: An Extraordinary Tale of Survival.”