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Dictionary of Sydney

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Travel writing

The Dictionary of Sydney was archived in 2021.

Travel writing

Subject

A Month in the Bush with Four Gentlemen

A Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay

Journal of Arthur Bowes Smyth, 1787 March 22-1789 August

Journal of a Voyage to New South Wales

Walkabout: Australia and the South Seas

What We Saw in Australia

Askew, John

Henning, Rachel Biddulph

Moorhouse, Geoffrey

Morris, Jan

Mundy, Godfrey Charles

Myers, Francis

Nicholas, John Liddiard

Nicol, John

Rees, Coralie

Twain, Mark

Waugh, James William

van Os, P

John Nicol, aged 67 c1822

Letter received from William Hill, Sydney Cove, Port Jackson, 26 July 1790 (copy made in 1791)

Page from James Scott's journal, Prince of Wales at Sea, 1-9 June 1787

Page from James Scott's journal, Prince of Wales at Sea, 20-27 December 1787

Saturday 8 March 1788 This day went on shore... from Arthur Bowes Smyth's journal on board the Lady Penrhyn

The first page of John Campbell's letter to his parents 9 August 1789, written during his return voyage to England from Australia on board the Lady Penrhyn

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Travel writing

A Month in the Bush with Four Gentlemen

Journal published in 1838 by Thomas Walker which recorded his journey from Sydney to Port Philip and discussed the state of farming and society at that time.

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A Narrative of the Expedition to Botany Bay

One of the earliest published accounts of life in the first days of the settlement, recorded by Watkin Tench.

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Journal of Arthur Bowes Smyth, 1787 March 22-1789 August

Journal by Arthur Bowes Smyth held in the National Library of Australia (MS 4568) concerning hia voyage to Australia in 1787 on the Lady Penrhyn, his stay in New South Wales and the trip back to England in 1789. Two other fair copies of the journal exist, one at the State Library of New South Wales (ML Safe 1/15) and the other at the British Museum (Add MS 47966)

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Journal of a Voyage to New South Wales

Journal by John White, surgeon with the First Fleet, which provided one of the first descriptions of the flora, fauna, settlement and peoples of the new colony.

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Walkabout: Australia and the South Seas

Monthly travel and geographic magazine published between 1934-1974 by the Australian National Travel Association (ANTA).

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What We Saw in Australia

Travel journal by Florence and Rosamond Hill, of their voyage to, and travels around Australia in 1873-4.

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Askew, John

English writer who visited Sydney in 1852.

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Henning, Rachel Biddulph

Colonial English migrant whose letters to her family about her colonial experiences were serialised posthumously in The Bulletin in 1951-1952 with illustrations by Norman Lindsay as The Letters of Rachel Henning, and subsequently published as a book. Her papers are now in the Mitchell Library.

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Moorhouse, Geoffrey

English journalist and author who wrote many books based on his travels.

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Morris, Jan

Welsh historian and travel writer, born 1926

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Mundy, Godfrey Charles

Soldier and author who commanded the military forces in the colony from 1846 to 1851 but is best remembered for his discerning eye and lively sketches in his publication of 1852 'Our Antipodes'.

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Myers, Francis

Writer of novels, drama and non-fiction, who wrote for the Argus newspaper under the pseudonym 'Telemachus'.

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Nicholas, John Liddiard

Author and traveller who supported and wrote about Samuel Marsden's missionary visit to New Zealand. Although granted land in Sydney, he returned to England and eventually sold his land to Marsden.

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Nicol, John

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Scottish sailor whose autobiography published in 1822 recorded his circumnavigation of the globe, involvement in the American War of Independence, his life on a whaling vessel and that on a convict transport. On the voyage aboard Lady Juliana he partnered with Sarah Whitlam and together they had a child on the voyage to Sydney. After arriving, Nicol was stationed there for six weeks before setting sail for England, never returning to Sydney.

Rees, Coralie

Writer and broadcaster, whose travel books, written with her husband, were bestsellers.

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Twain, Mark

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American author and humorist.

Waugh, James William

Scottish publisher, bookseller and stationer in Sydney who wrote and published The Stranger's Guide to Sydney and the Australian Almanac.

Waugh migrated to Australia with his parents and sisters in 1840 to join his brothers David and Robert. The family settled in the Illawarra region. Waugh planned to become a publisher as his father had been in Edinburgh, and moved to Sydney where he worked for bookseller William Piddington before setting up on his own in November 1851, initially at 14 Hunter Street. He published, among other things, a volume of Henry Parkes' poetry, religious, science and art magazines, almanacs and tourist guides as well as a commercial directory to Sydney. He married Mary Lee Stobo in 1856. In late 1862, Waugh closed the business and moved to Bowenfels with his growing family. Waugh was insolvent by 1866 and the family moved to Kiama where they ran the fashionable boarding house Waratah House on Teralong Street. Waugh was also offering his services as a bookkeeper and Latin tutor, and was involved in the Kiama School of Arts. He died at home from 'pulmonary consumption', or tubercolosis, at the age of 48.

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van Os, P

Dutch author who wrote about Syeney in the 1840s.

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John Nicol, aged 67 c1822

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By

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

(frontispiece of 'The life and adventures of John Nicol, mariner' Edinburgh : London : William Blackwood ; T. Cadell, 1822)

Letter received from William Hill, Sydney Cove, Port Jackson, 26 July 1790 (copy made in 1791)

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Transcript:
Copy of a Letter from W. Hill to Jonathan Watham Esqr. of Bond Court, Walbrook London
dated Sydney Cove, Port Jackson, 26th. July 1790

Dear Sir,

Fain wou'd I give you my warmest Thanks, and tell you of the great affection I bear you for those genuine, disinterested and animated Exertions of Kindness, you poured upon me, when I wanted your Assistance; but my Pen is even incompetent to give you a faint Idea, how high the pulse of Gratitude beats within me; my Heart, I hope is too honest not to look on Flatterers in a very despicable point of View; tho' it cannot but approve of Eulogy, which is no other than paying a just Tribute of Praise; and my mind wou'd feel an insupportable Burthen, were I not permitted to evince you its sense of Love and Duty, for so worthy a Benefactor; - I thought it my duty to write to Mr Wilberforce, giving him the underneath account of our Voyage, and the situation of this Colony; I mean not to intrude, and hope I have not done wrong, if I have, I can only lament it, and plead in excuse that I had not you to Consult.

It would be tedious to enumerate the variableness of the Winds, and trifling Occurrences that happened in our rout to the Cape; I will therefore only Remark, that we sailed from Cowes harbour (Isle of Wight) the seventeenth of January, and arrived in False Bay, Cape of Good Hope the thirteenth of April; that our Voyage might be deemed a very Prosperous one, so far as we pass'd the Line with few Calms; and those of short duration, nor had we any bad Weather, 'till we came in sight of that tremendous Promontory; (well might its Discoverer, Bartholomew Diaz, name it Cabo de Tormentoso, or the Stormy;) we met so violent a Tempest, which continued for six and thirty Hours, that left us no Room even to hope an Escape from a Watry Grave; It being the winter season at our Arrival, was the reason of our anchoring in false Bay, as the safest Harbour; otherwise Table bay in fine Weather, or in the Summer Season is much to be prefer'd; being contiguous to the Cape Town; we found the Dutch, answer minutely the Character given of them by Travellers; a Change of Clime, which is generally believ'd to produce a Change of Constitution & Disposition had not abated one Tittle of their Propensity to Avarice; their Governors are Merchants, and monopolize the whole Stock of the adjacent Country, and will not supply the Shipping but at an advance of five or six Hundred per cent.

Here I had some Conversation with the unfortunate Mr Riou (of the Guardian), the Loss of his Ship, will be severely felt by this Colony; and I much fear the Dutch are taking every Advantage, of his situation, charging enormous sums for Wharehouse room, and fresh Provisions for the Crew; so that the Cargo must, ere now be insufficient to defray the Cost - We left the Cape, the twenty ninth of April, and anchor'd in this beautiful Harbour the twenty sixth of June; Wou'd I cou'd draw an eternal Shade over the Remembrance of this miserable Part of our Voyage, miserable - not so much in itself, as render'd so by the Villiany, oppression and shameful Peculation of the masters of the Transports. - The Bark I was on board of, was indeed, unfit, from her make & size, to be sent to so great a Distance; if it blew but a trifling Gale, she was Lost in the Waters; of which she shipp'd so much, that from the Cape, the unhappy Wretches, the Convicts, were considerably above their waists in Water; and the men of my Company, whose Births were not so far forward, were nearly up to their middles; in this situation they were obliged, for the safety of the Ship, to be pen 'd down; but when the Gales abated, no means were used to purify the air by Fumigations, no vinegar was applied, to rectify the nauseous steams, issuing from their miserable Dungeons; Humanity shudders to think that of nine hundred male Convicts embark'd in this Fleet, three Hundred and seventy are already Dead, & four hundred & fifty are landed sick, and so emaciated and helpless, that very few, or any of them, can be saved by care or medecine; so that sooner it pleases God to remove them, the Better it will be for this Colony; which is not in a situation to bear any Burthen; as I imagine the Medicine Chest to be nearly exhausted and Provisions are a scarce Article.

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a136001 / SAFE/MLMSS 6821, page 1]

(Mitchell Library)

Page from James Scott's journal, Prince of Wales at Sea, 1-9 June 1787

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By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a1142003 / SAFE / DLMSQ 43]

(from James Scott - Journal titled `Remarks on a passage Botnay bay 1787', 13 May 1787 - 20 May 1792) (Dixson Library)

Page from James Scott's journal, Prince of Wales at Sea, 20-27 December 1787

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By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a1142029 / SAFE / DLMSQ 43, 29]

(from James Scott - Journal titled `Remarks on a passage Botnay bay 1787', 13 May 1787 - 20 May 1792) (Dixson Library)

Saturday 8 March 1788 This day went on shore... from Arthur Bowes Smyth's journal on board the Lady Penrhyn

full record »

By

Arthur Bowes Smyth

Contributed By

National Library of Australia

(from the Journal of Arthur Bowes Smyth, March 22 1787-August 1789)

The first page of John Campbell's letter to his parents 9 August 1789, written during his return voyage to England from Australia ...

full record »

Transcript: Honord Mother & Father

Agust the 9th 1789 at Sea on Board of the Ship Lady Penrhyn

This Comes with my kind Respects to you hoping that you are all Well I write to you at the Cape of Good hope by a Flemish Ship that was bound to Portsmouth in 1787 watterd & Saild from thence November the 12th January the 25th Arivd at Bottany Bay to the Southward of the Bay Saw great Number of the Inhabitants the Governore did not approve of the Ground heir About 12 Miles to the Northward he found Out a very good Harbour for the Shiping & better Ground Called port Jackson the 26 Sailed & Arived the Same day the Governor went on Shore to take Possession of the Land with a Company of Granadeers & Some Convicts At three A Clock in the Afternoon he sent on board of the Supply Brigantine for the Union Jack then orders was Gave fore the Soldiers to March down to the West Sid of the Cove they Cut one of the Trees Down & fixt as flag Staf & Histd the Jack and Fired four Folleys of Small Arms which was Answered with three Cheers from the Brig then thay Marched up the head of the Cove where they Piched their Tents I Wrote to you their by the Ship Alexander May the 5th 1788 Sailed From their Towards Lord Howes Illand found out by the Supply Brig on hir Passage to Norfolk Illand May the 15th Arived Histd our Boat out & went on Shore Expecting to get Some Turtle but did not the 18th Saild from their to Wards Otahita the 2nd of June Discovered three Small Ilands at 11 A Clock came up with two Smalest ons their was no Possability of Landing then Bore Away for the other Histd the Smal Boat out the Captn Mate & four hands went (end of first page)

By

From the collections of the

State Library of New South Wales

[a1516001 / SAFE/MLMSS 7525]

(Mitchell Library)

Literature