William Dougall

PART ONE William Dougall “By God they do mon” The Roaring Days The night too quickly passes And we are growing old, So let us fill our glasses And toast the Days of Gold; When finds of wondrous treasure Set all the South ablaze, And you and I were faithful mates All through the roaring day Henry Lawson. Pioneers They came of bold and roving stock that would not fixed abide; There were the sons of field and flock since e’er they learned to ride; We may not hope to see such men in these degenerate years As those explorers of the bush – the brave old pioneers. ‘Twas they who rode the trackless bush in heat and storm and drought; ‘Twas they that heard the master-word that called them further out; ‘Twas they that followed up the trail the mountain cattle made And pressed across the mighty range where now their bones are laid. But now the times are dull and slow, the brave old days are dead When hardy bushmen started out, and forced their way ahead By tangled scrub and forests grim towards the unknown west, And spied the far off promised land from off the ranges’ crest. Oh! Ye, that sleep in lonely graves by far-off ridge and plain, We drink to you in silence now as Christmas comes again, The men who fought the wilderness through rough unsettled years – The founders of our nation’s life, the brave old pioneers. A B (Banjo) Paterson Hearts of Gold In nights of terror and days of doubt, Shifting the outposts farther out. William H. Ogilvie CHAPTER 1 (Migration) Surely, in his wildest dreams, he would not have imagined that one day he would stand trial, charged with murder. But this became the reality for William. Born in the small rural town and parish of Lesmahagow, in the district of Lanarkshire, south of Glasgow, on 6th of April 1831, William was the youngest of 10 children, born to Thomas and Mary (nee Dykes) Dougall. The Family Home Lesmahagow Possessed of an adventurous spirit and a pioneering bent that would lead him to become an explorer and settler, in the young colonies of Australia, William migrated, as a consequence of the ‘Lowland Clearances’, from Scotland aboard the “London”, arriving in the port town of Geelong, in Victoria, on the 4th July 1852. William was the first to leave the nest and was followed by John, who sailed on the maiden voyage of “The Black Swan”, departing on 30 July 1853 and arriving in Australia on 15 November 1853. James was next to leave home, and made his way to Jamaica in 1854. Thomas married Mary Hamilton in Scotland, on 4th June 1858, and the newlyweds departed for Australia from Liverpool, on 10th June 1858, aboard the Saldhana, and arrived at Port Melbourne on 18th September 1858. Several of the children of the eldest sibling, Helen (nee Dougall) Watson, migrated to New Zealand between the years of 1880 and 1886. The Township of Lesmahagow The Locality of Lesmahagow Shortly after his arrival in Geelong, William found employment with a Mr John Cummings, and remained in his employ for the next three years. Brother John joined William in 1853 and in 1855, together, they purchased a small holding of seventy five acres, in a place called Ascot, about 10 or 12 miles north of Ballarat. The brothers operated successfully and were joined by their brother Thomas and his wife Mary in 1858. Continued success led to Thomas purchasing his own property at Wallan Wallan (now just Wallan), in 1864. He bought this property from James and Mary Quinn, the grandparents of notorious bushranger, Ned Kelly. It is rumoured that Ned was born at this property. John and William bought the Mt Franklin Estate jointly in 1867. They purchased this property from the deceased estate of Edward Stone Parker who ran the property as the government protectorate of the district’s aboriginal people, Dja Dja Wurrung. During a brief interlude in 1861, William took up a Government grant of 100 square miles (64,000 acres) in Queensland. The terms of the grant required him to stock the land within 6 months. William decided there was an element of risk that he was not prepared to take, so he sold the property for 500 pounds ($1000). Perhaps this speculation and possible success on the Ballarat goldfields set him up for his future adventures and subsequent success. Below is a copy of the letter to the Captain of the London, from the passengers, expressing their thanks for his competent and gracious conduct during the voyage. To Captain Tillman of the ship London. Geelong, 4th July, 1852. DEAR SIR, - Our voyage has now, thank God, come to a successful termination, and we, the emigrants of the ship London, under your command, cannot take our leave of you without expressing our deep and grateful acknowledgements for your unwearied exertions in promoting our comforts during the passage, as well as for your fatherly care of all. The anxiety with which you watched over our female relations and friends, demands our especial thanks. Your generous kindness to our sick in supplying them with food from your own table we can never forget. We wish to express our admiration of your zeal in the discharge of all your duties, and of the able and manlike way you were prepared to meet every emergency, and by which, under the providence of God, you have been enabled to bring us in safely to our "desired haven," Our supply of provisions was most abundant, of superior quality, and cooked in the best manner. We most respectfully beg your acceptance of the accompanying small token of our grateful feelings, and fervently pray that God will guide and direct you in safety to your native home, and crown you with everlasting blessings. James Robertson, Cabin Passenger; Julius Armstrong, John Bennett, Anthony Carroll, Michael Burke, Michael Hayes, Bernard Larey Emigrants, and 95 others. CHAPTER 2 (The Northern Expedition) John McDouall Stuart’s Marked Tree In 1864, William had found his way to Adelaide, where he became a late replacement, to join Boyle Travers Finniss’s Northern Expedition, the purpose of which, was to establish and settle, a northern capital. To appreciate the significance of the role he played in Australia’s early exploration history, I must first recount some of that history. I’ll take us back to 1862 and John McDouall Stuart’s successful crossing of the Australian continent, from South to North. Although perhaps, I should firstly mention the discovery of gold in the 1850’s and the subsequent rush to the Victorian goldfields, particularly in the Ballarat area. Both William Dougall and Frederick Litchfield spent some time in that area, ‘trying their luck’, prior to departing for the north. But no; I digress. Back to John McDouall Stuart. John McDouall Stuart left Adelaide on 25th October 1861, on a privately funded expedition, chasing a reward of 2000 pounds ($4000), offered by the South Australian Government, for the first person to successfully cross the continent. This was Stuart’s third attempt to cross from bottom to top. A distance of about 4000kms. His party comprised of ten men and included W.P. ‘Patrick’ Auld; Stephen King Jnr., and Francis Thring. About two years after their return, William Dougall would ‘rub shoulders’ with these three men, and also Fred Litchfield, who was “the first man to discover gold in the Northern Territory”. Following the successful crossing of the continent, the British Government decided to hand over the administration of the North of Australia to the South Australian Government. The British had previously made three unsuccessful attempts to settle the North. It was a huge area of land and became known as the Northern Territory of South Australia. The South Australian Government wasted no time and arranged Territory land sales (sight unseen), in Great Britain and Australia, in an attempt to attract new settlers. They also organized an exploration and survey expedition to establish and settle a capital of the north. The Northern Expedition. Initially, forty men were chosen to head north, comprising surveyors, chainmen, stockmen and labourers. They departed from Adelaide on 21 March 1864, aboard three ships. The Henry Ellis, the Beatrice and the Yatala, and would become known as “the men of sixty four”. William Dougall was aboard the Yatala. W.P. Patrick Auld and Fred Litchfield were also amongst the party. About six months later, a further forty men arrived at the settlement aboard the South Australian. A few of these men (and two women), were prospective settlers, but the others did include Stephen King Jnr., (stockman) and Francis Thring. How and why William became a part of the Northern Expedition, I’m not sure. I am sure that he wouldn’t have anticipated the adventures that awaited him. Yatala The Yatala was at the time of her launch, the largest vessel built at Port Adelaide, and was employed on Government marine coasting duties till May, 1864, when she was sent to the Northern Territory. She was soon dispatched to Timor for repairs, and condemned there in November, 1864, and was sold for 233 pounds. She was built departmentally by daily labour, and cost over 3,200 pounds, including 536 pounds for law costs.' The first group of forty The second group of forty William Dougall The man chosen to lead the expedition, was Col. Boyle Travis Finniss. Finniss was a retired British army officer, who had been the first Premier of the colony of South Australia, and earlier, also the Commissioner of Police.

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