State Library of South Australia logo Taking it to the edge
SA Memory. South Australia past and present, for the future




Insufficient firewood to boil the billy : diary 27 May 1897
Title : Insufficient firewood to boil the billy : diary 27 May 1897 Insufficient firewood to boil the billy : diary 27 May 1897
Add To My SA Memory
Creator : Rudall, William Frederick, 1861-1953
Source : William Frederick Rudall PRG 474/2
Date of creation : 1897
Format : Diary
Contributor : State Library catalogue
Catalogue record
The State Library of South Australia is keen to find out more about SA Memory items. We encourage you to contact the Library if you have additional information about any of these items.
Copyright : This item is reproduced courtesy of Mrs Barbara Rennie. It may be printed or saved for research or study. Use for any other purpose requires written permission from Mrs Barbara Rennie and the State Library of South Australia. To request approval, complete the Permission to publish form.
Description :

In his search for Charles Wells and George Jones, William Rudall recorded details of the terrain, how the expedition's camels were struggling in the heat, which was recorded at 124 degrees (as high as that particular thermometer rose) and with the lack of water. The nights were cold and there was not even enough firewood to boil the billy! Rudall speculated on what the Aboriginal people found for food, as there was little evidence of animals. Rudall reached Braeside on 20 June 1897 and learnt there that Larry Wells had found the bodies of the missing men.

William Rudall was sent out by the Western Australian government to lead a search party from the Oakover River - this too was unsuccessful, although Rudall successfully mapped an area of 23,000 square miles of previously unexplored country, during the six months of his search.
Subjects
Related names :

Calvert Scientific Exploring Expedition (1896-1897)

Rudall, William Frederick, 1861-1953

Wells, C. F., (Charles Frederick), 1849-1897

Jones, George Lindsay, 1879-1897

Coverage year : 1897
Place : Great Sandy Desert (WA)
Further reading :
Sitters, Valerie William Rudall and the search for Charles Wells and George Jones, Geonews, vol. 6, no.3, July/August 1999, pp.5-10
Internet links :
Exhibitions and events :

Navigation

Home

About SA Memory

Explore SA Memory

SA Memory Themes

Search

My SA Memory

Learning

What's on

Contributors