Australian Stories from our Past

Send us Fan Mail Nine weeks on the road and the Murray finally slips behind them, but Bendigo still doesn’t feel real.  We pick up our 1852 overland trek right where the party crosses into Victoria, a colony gripped by Australian gold rush fever, and we track the next month of slow, stubborn progress through Mallee scrub, sandhills, swamps, and half-formed bullock dray tracks that barely resemble...

Send us Fan Mail A river in flood can be a teacher and a judge.  We open on the Murray–Darling Basin’s split personality—winter-and-snowmelt-fed Murray versus summer-storm-fed Darling—to explain why our 1852 trek met a swollen Murray while the Darling ran lower.  From there, the story flows to Gundagai, a town mapped neatly between a big river and an anabranch despite Wiradjuri warnings.  Earlier...

Send us Fan Mail A newborn in a spring cart, a flood-swollen river, and a punt that won’t run on Sundays—our 1852 trek along the Murray is a study in grit, chance, and consequence.  We read the original diaries aloud and sit with what they reveal: Regent parrots blazing over saltbush, lost stockmen saved by First Nations know-how, and the stark reality of cattle drowning as they “ring the water” m...

Send us Fan Mail A flooded river, a stubborn pony, and a crooked border set the stage for a journey that refuses to fit neat lines on a map.  We follow our hardy party from Lake Bonney through sand and scrub toward Lake Victoria, rebuilding their path from terse diary entries and hard choices made under rain-heavy skies.  What some call Freeman’s Creek aligns with Ral Ral, and distances snap into...

Send us Fan Mail A river can be a map, a memory, and a meeting place all at once.  We follow the Murray’s sweep from Charles Sturt’s gruelling 1830 voyage and the collapse of the inland sea myth, to Joseph Hawdon’s cattle drive that carved the overland stock route, and then into the gritty detail of our 1852 party wrestling a stubborn Timor pony through sand toward Overland Corner and Lake Bonney....

Send us Fan Mail A desert boundary, a flooded creek, and forty bullocks that won’t stop heading home—this is the uneasy start of a family’s 1852 push from Kooramoora to the Bendigo goldfields. We open with the puzzle of Goyder’s Line, the fenceless border where rainfall drops, Mallee yields to saltbush, and the dream of cropping often turns to stone ruins.  Then we set our wheels on the Upper Murr...

Send us Fan Mail Bankruptcy to gold fever—William Henry Neale's remarkable journey captures the essence of Australia's 1850s transformation.  After two financial collapses, including a £6,000 debt in England (equivalent to $1.8 million today), Neale found himself working at South Australia's famed "Monster Mine" in Burra, then the continent's seventh most populated ar...

Send us Fan Mail The deadly journey to Australia wasn't just about surviving treacherous seas—it was about escaping invisible killers that stalked passengers in the cramped confines of sailing ships.  Dr. George Mayo's diary from his second voyage records the heartbreaking reality: "Friday March 15th, aged two years three months, dead." We're joined by a medical expert who...

Send us Fan Mail Deadly epidemics swept through 19th-century cities with terrifying regularity, leaving medical practitioners like Drs. Watts and Mayo powerless against invisible killers they couldn't understand.  What made these diseases so devastating, and how did we finally conquer them?  Our medical expert takes us through the horrifying reality of cholera – nicknamed "the blue death...

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Send us Fan Mail In the unforgiving landscape of 1840s South Australia, economic disaster struck with devastating consequences.  This deeply researched episode unveils the human story behind colonial financial collapse through the experiences of 22-year-old John Watts, who arrived in 1842 with £500 and dreams of prosperity, only to find himself destitute within a year.  The narrative takes us to E...

Send us Fan Mail A young man's rejection of medical destiny leads to an epic sea journey and colonial adventure in this fascinating exploration of early South Australian settlement. When John Watts turned away from following his surgeon father's footsteps, he made a decision that would take him across multiple oceans, through terrifying storms, and into a colony teetering on economic col...

Send us Fan Mail Dr George Mayo's private diary from 1839 opens a rare window into the social world of a migrant ship bound for Australia.  As ship surgeon aboard the Asia, Mayo moved freely between social classes—something no other passenger could do—and recorded his unfiltered observations about everyone from the captain to the stewards. His candid entries reveal the fascinating dynamics of...

Send us Fan Mail Embark on a journey back to 1839 as we unravel the remarkable tale of Dr. George Mayo aboard the migrant ship Asia.  This episode reveals a gripping narrative filled with adventure, health struggles, and even threats of piracy during a time of mass migration to Australia.  As a ship's surgeon, Mayo faced dire circumstances—gunfire and rampant diseases among the passengers.  H...

Send us Fan Mail Curious about your family's past?  Discover the fascinating story of the Watts family crest, featuring a greyhound and a golden arrow—a symbol born from a dramatic saga involving survival and colonial legacy.  This episode dives deep into the history of family crests, untangling their significance in linking individuals to their lineage and societal standing during the Victor...

Send us Fan Mail What if the legacy of a kind-hearted village doctor could inspire generations and spark dreams of adventure across continents?    Join us as we explore the captivating story of the Watts family, where Thomas Watts defied the Dickensian stereotype of a struggling doctor and rose as a prosperous figure within England's burgeoning middle class.  Discover how his remarkable choic...

Send us Fan Mail Unearth the captivating story of John Barton Hack, a pioneering figure whose journey from England to South Australia was fuelled by ambition and adventure.  What if your investments could shape a new world?  Discover how Hack's Quaker roots, career as a currier, and ties to the Wakefield family propelled him toward the opportunities of a lifetime in the burgeoning colony.  Th...

Send us Fan Mail What if the founding of a colony was more than just a historical event, but a dramatic saga filled with excitement, tension, and tragedy?  Join us as we uncover the thrilling story of South Australia's establishment, starting with the arrival of the first fleet and the consequential landing of Rear Admiral Sir John Hindmarsh aboard HMS Buffalo.  Experience the anticipation of...

Send us Fan Mail Could more accurate early reports have changed the fate of South Australia?  Join us as we unravel the chaotic beginnings of this unique colony, influenced by misconceptions and missteps, starting with the ill-fated decision to settle on Kangaroo Island.  We'll explore the murky waters of early exploration and question how the colony's development might have differed had...

Send us Fan Mail Could internal conflicts lead to tragedy, or is there something more sinister lurking in the mysteries of Kangaroo Island?   As we navigate the puzzling disappearance of trekkers, Slater and Osborne, we uncover the heated exchanges that fuelled suspicions of foul play.  With the Africaine 's arrival at Nepean Bay, the settlers' anxiety is palpable, documented in Robert G...

Send us Fan Mail Embark on a remarkable journey with us as we navigate little-known events in early South Australian history.  Picture young Charles Nantes, in early 1830’s England, a man pursuing a fresh start away from the shadows of his father's scandalous legacy.   In 1836, Charles boards the Africaine , bound for South Australia, alongside other colonists like Captain John Finley Duff an...

Send us Fan Mail Join us as we explore the fascinating life of Heinrich Wilhelm Nantez.   A man whose journey from Bremen, Germany to London illustrates both the opportunities and pitfalls of 18th century Europe.  Embracing a new English identity as Henry Nantes, he navigates the complex English mercantile society with the help of his influential ally, Richard Muilman Trench Chiswell.  Their frien...

Send us Fan Mail What if you were tasked with establishing a new colony, facing the unknown and battling both the elements and human conflict?   Join us as we uncover the incredible journey of the first fleet to South Australia, starting with the courageous voyage of the John Pirie.   Imagine a ship no longer than a cricket pitch, teeming with hopeful settlers, livestock, and supplies, enduring a...

Send us Fan Mail What if you found out that the city of Adelaide was meticulously designed by a visionary figure amidst a backdrop of poor strategic planning and unexpected challenges?  Our latest episode of Today's Stories from Our Past reveals the intricate and ambitious blueprint laid out by the South Australian Company.  We delve into the crucial roles of key officials and surveyors, part...

Send us Fan Mail Discover the surprising irony behind South Australia's convict-free reputation as we unravel the story of how the colony was conceptualized by a convict whose radical ideas shaped its foundation. Explore the grim reality of early 1800s England, where overcrowding, poverty, and the quest for religious freedom drove many to seek new beginnings in the British colonies. Learn why...