Touring
Round Australia
Austin
12/4 tourer in 1926
Please note: If you can have a large
scale map of Australia to hand it would greatly add to the interest
of this story, or alternatively an on-line map such as
http://maps.google.com.au/
Austin
motor cars have never been afraid to take their owners on long, and
sometimes hazardous journeys. We only have to look at the exploits
of the late John Coleman who drove his little Austin Seven from
Buenos Aires in Argentina right up to New York. Then of course
there was Miss Gladys De Havilland who drove her Austin Seven
across the World to New Zealand. ‘Mugwump’, the 1930 Austin 16/6
Burnham, driven by students from Bristol University all the way to
Johannesburg in the early 1960’s, and then driven back again by
South African students, and of course not forgetting the numerous
pensioned-off Austin 12/4 Taxicabs in the 1950’s, again mostly
driven by students, to all manner of unlikely destinations across
the World – and after clocking up thousand’s of miles plying for
hire around the streets of London.
Back in the early 1920’s there was a craze (if we can call it that)
to drive a motorcar around Australia – a distance of approximately
10,000 miles, and when you consider what the roads must have been
like – if indeed there were any in some places, this too must rank
amongst the craziest of trials of endurance for man and his
motorcar.
Several intrepid motorists set out to attempt this tour during the
early 1920’s, One such pair being a Mr. Jack Dorney who, with his
newly married wife, completed their honeymoon tour in an Overland
Whippet they, being the first, set the stage for others to follow.
In 1925 Messrs Woodward and Mayor completed the same journey, only
to advise all and sundry on their return that they were all set to
undertake the very same trip again.
However our story concerns Wilfred (Fred) and Ellen Anderson who,
after completing a tour of Southern Australia in 1925, decided to
Circumnavigate the entire continent in an anti-clockwise direction
the following year. Both journeys being undertaken in an Austin
12/4 motorcar. – of course.!
The
Sydney Morning Herald 1926
Mr. &
Mrs. Wilfred Anderson, of Wagga, recently completed a motor trip
round Australia. They left Wagga in an Austin car on August 31st
for Sydney, and travelled thence to Brisbane, Roma, Longreach,
Cloncurry and through the Northern Territory to Western Australia.
After leaving Perth they visited Coolgardie, Balladonia and Eucla,
traversed the desert to Fowler’s Bay and passing through Port
Augusta, Mt. Gambier and Melbourne, returned to Wagga. The car was
fitted with collapsible beds, cooking utensils and a table. Mr.
Anderson said that the stories of hardships suffered by
round-Australia tourists were considerably exaggerated. Mr.
Anderson left for Sydney this morning.
Thus the Anderson’s epic tour of Australia was reported in the
Sydney Morning Herald shortly after their return from their second
tour of Australia in their new Austin 12/4 tourer.
The tour, as reported above, started off from their home in Wagga
Wagga in New South Wales on August 31st 1926 but they actually
commenced their journey on September 22nd eventually arriving back
three months later on December 22nd. Their journey took them into
Queensland, across the Northern Territory, down into Western
Australia, across South Australia and back into New South Wales,
but our story is actually in two parts and commences with the
‘trial’ run across South Australia in 1925.
Wilfred Anderson and his wife Ellen decided to undertake the tour
around Australia in 1926 in a Holden bodied Austin 12/4 open tourer
– which was described in a newspaper report as an ‘Empire’ model.
The Anderson’s, the report went on to say, “Were not young people
like the Dorneys, having both reached middle age”. “In 1925 they
had motored from Wagga Wagga in New South Wales to Perth and back,
a distance of around 4,500 miles, and were so charmed by the
nomadic life they endured that they were determined to make an even
longer trip – right around Australia the following year, and
considered that the Austin 12/4 was rugged enough to withstand any
rough roads which they were likely to encounter”.
___________________
Wilfred Anderson was no stranger to the
care and maintenance of the motorcar as he ran a garage in his home
town of Wagga Wagga, so it should be assumed that he knew exactly
what his Austin was capable of and able to fix any problems which
might occur during the journey.
The garage, as you can see from the photograph sold mostly American
motorcars, such as Hudsons, Essex and Dodge, and it was the last of
these that actually helped to pay for their tour, for not long
before they were due to set off, Wilfred received a letter from
America advising him that he had won a trip to the U.S.A, as a
reward for selling an outstanding number of Dodge motorcars.
Wilfred replied that he did not wish to travel over to America, as
he had still much to see of his own country – Australia, and asked
whether it would be possible to have the monetary value of the
prize instead. The company agreed to his request and provided the
financial means to undertake the tour. Perhaps they may not have
been so keen to do so had they known the intention was to use an
Austin!
Unlike other motor cars which had attempted this tour, the Austin,
which was described as a sturdy British-made four cylinder
motorcar, had not been strengthened in any way, the springs on the
Anderson’s Austin, for example, were ‘as fitted’ at the factory and
even the Smith’s shock absorbers, were, we are told, standard
too.
In their drive to Perth and back in 1925 the Austin gave absolutely
no ‘significant’ trouble, and the springs, having been adequately
tested on this trip were considered to be more than capable to cope
with the worst road conditions which they may encounter on their
round Australia adventure. However, having said that, the Austin
was all but written-off on the very last leg of their journey –
but, through no fault of the car itself.
From a newspaper cutting published prior to their round Australia
journey in 1926, the writer commented that: “Admirers of the
British car will watch with interest the progress of this car,
because it will be one of the severest ordeals to which a British
car has been subjected in this country”.
The report then went on to comment on the various preparations
which had been made for this journey and the addition of home
comforts with which to sustain them throughout their adventure: “Mr
Anderson has exercised great ingenuity in preparing the car for the
journey. It has a large petrol carrying capacity for the long
stretches between fuel supply stations, a large water tank,
camping-out body, and accommodation for the large amount of luggage
necessary on such a trip. The luggage includes folding chairs and a
table, a cooking stove, shotgun, tarpaulins for shelter, and
digging implements in case of an accident. A ‘pull-u-out’ winch is
fitted to the front cross member as an added precaution against
being stranded. On one running board is a cosy kennel, in which
their mascot, a dog which answers to the name of ‘Kerry’ is
comfortably housed”.
The report also mentioned that Wilfred Anderson had been in touch
with Jack Dorney who lived in Brisbane, and from whom he was able
to gain a considerable amount of useful information about his
forthcoming trip, not only on the road conditions but also on the
type of weather he was likely to encounter in the various regions
through which they were about to travel. Especially in the dreary
north-west, where he was advised to avoid the wet season between
late November and December when heavy rains usually sweep across
that region with many areas becoming severely flooded.
The ‘anti-clockwise’ route chosen for this adventure was to head
West via Toowoomba to Roma, then head North to Blackall, Winton,
Comooweal, Newcastle Waters and Katherine onto to Darwin. From
Darwin they will proceed via Derby and Broome and then go across to
Perth and back to Wagga Wagga via Port Augusta, Adelaide and
Melbourne.
Jack Dorney was able to secure the services of the Vacuum Oil
Company in ensuring that there was always a supply of oil and
petrol at various points on the route for his trip. Wilfred was
also fortunate in this respect, and was assured that supplies of
Plume Motor Spirit and Mobiloil ‘Gargoyle’ oil would be available
in readiness at various depots if and when required.
1925:
The First tour of Southern Australia - Perth and
Back
The Anderson’s set out on their first,
shorter ‘clockwise’ trip around the southern coast of Australia on
Sunday 4th October 1925, Keeping them company, but driving a Buick,
was Wilfred’s brother Harry, his wife Florrie and their two
children Freddie and Jean – who was known as ‘Titch’.
The following is an account of that trip which has been
re-constructed from the diary entries recorded by Wilfred’s Wife,
Ellen, who made meticulous notes of their journey, adding
‘interesting’ comments on the places they visited and the people
whom they encountered en-route.
New
South Wales & Victoria:
The journey started off as planned, travelling during the day,
stopping off to set camp for the night and to do a spot of fishing
for their meals, which according to the amount caught, certainly in
the early days of the tour, appeared to represent their basic diet
for all meals including breakfast.
Their first encounter with poor weather conditions was at the
Victorian border town of Orbost, where during the night the wind
reached gale force. “It was raining like fury” Ellen also recorded
Orbost as being a very beautiful area with many exotic birds. It
was here that the Buick appeared to develop a very ‘funny’ squeak,
but on investigation they found that the noise was coming, not from
the car, but from the birds. With rain pouring down, they proceeded
to a place called Marlo which was 10 miles off the main road and
running alongside the Snowy River for the entire 10 miles. Here the
car slipped and slid all over the now saturated road, resulting at
one point in the car turning a full circle and ending up an
embankment facing the river, stopping just in time to prevent the
car from sliding into it. Ellen recorded in her diary that she
“became very frightened, the night was pitch black and it was
raining like fury, I was very glad when the journey ended”
Wilfred and Harry wearing oilskins, managed to erect the tents in
the pouring rain, whilst the women and children kept dry by staying
in their cars. Their comment regarding Marlo, was “there was
nothing worth seeing there, it being a bit of a one-horse
town”.
They awoke the following morning to bright sunshine, and declared
that now, “everything in the garden was lovely”. After breaking
camp they motored on to Tahmoor, on Lake Entrance where they
stopped for dinner. Here they walked down to the head of the lake
and waded through to the other side and across to Ninety Mile Beach
– which was recorded as ‘a fine sight’. However the lake was full
of crabs and Florrie, who waded across without shoes found that
several crabs had attached themselves to her toes and nipped her
badly.
After breaking camp they headed off towards Melbourne via Berwick
where they camped for the night. The next morning they drove into
Melbourne and garaged the cars at a garage called ‘Village Bell’,
then took a taxi from there to the Victoria Coffee Palace, where,
after a meal, went to see the play ‘No No Nanette’ – which
apparently they didn’t think much of! After visiting Melbourne they
continued on to Geelong and camped 20 miles out, with the wind now
blowing a gale.
The following day they went on to Camperdown and continued on to
within a mile of Warnabool where they camped near the beach for the
night.
Ellen commented in her diary that “the country all the way is very
pretty and all under cultivation, with no reserves or timber about
since leaving Melbourne”. It was at this time that Wilfred thought
it would be funny to smoke a cigar, which unfortunately made him
sick and feel very unwell. Ellen did little to help in this
situation by singing; ‘Freddy and his Wild Woodbine” (tobacco) –
which was certainly not appreciated. They motored into Warnabool
then drove on to within 4 miles of Heywood. It was here that
Wilfred ground in a new valve to replace one which had burnt out,
and also took the opportunity to repair the sun visor which had
blown off in the wind. Rain was again causing minor problems, but
the intrepid adventurers were quite relaxed about this aspect of
the journey, as, by the time they reached Meningie, they now had a
plague of Mosquitoes to contend with.
Into
South Australia:
The Austin Crossing the Murray River on a Punt
Saturday
October 24th. After a
night’s sleep, they continued on to Wellington – which they
considered to be “a one horse town”, and where they had to cross
the Murray River in a punt which cost them 2/8d. for the fare. They
were then able to continue onto Adelaide via Strathalbyn which they
thought to be “a very pretty little town”. They spent that night
camped out on Semaphore Beach at Port Adelaide.
When in Adelaide, they made enquiries regarding the road conditions
out to the west, but no one whom they asked seemed to know anything
about them, so they decided to drive onto Port Augusta and try
there. At this point Wilfred’s Brother Harry decided that he had
had enough and so he and his family left Wilfred and Ellen to
continue with their tour alone, and headed back to Melbourne, just
24 days into the trip.
Unfazed by Harry’s desertion, Wilfred and Ellen pressed on, and
after leaving Adelaide, drove just 5 miles into Gawler where they
camped the night. The following day they headed off to Roseworthy,
Farlee, Riverston and Auburn, where they observed that the harvest
was in full swing. This lead them into Watervale where they viewed
an ancient church. From there they went on through Clare,
Brinkworth and Krolunga which they noted was a great grape growing
area.
On Friday 30th October they drove onto Warmertown and onto Port
Pirie which turned out to be quite a fair-sized shipping town. They
then continued on to Port Germein which Ellen described as “a God
forsaken place”. However they did stop to do some fishing and were
rewarded with 3 fish and a crab.
Another valve required grinding in before continuing on to Port
Augusta – which Ellen described as “a hot, dry, dismal hole of a
place”. Here they had to put the Austin on a punt which was towed
by a small motor boat across the Gulf to Post Augusta West.
Still concerned about the condition of the roads they went to the
largest garage in the town, and also the police station, but could
still not obtain any useful information. They also went to the
Railway Station and spoke to the Station Master, who they
understood had worked on the Transcontinental Railway since the
line was first built, and he advised that because it was all desert
it would be quite impossible to find their way across it. (even in
an Austin Twelve), So they decided to leave the Austin at Port
Augusta West, and camped out in the Bush for the night, during
which they endured a terrible storm which raged all through the
night.
Having weathered the storm they decided to leave the car where it
was and took the Transcontinental train to Perth which left at 9.pm
on Sunday 1st November.
The Police Station at Augusta
West
In her diary, Ellen reported that “there
was very little to see except plains, salt bush and sand” and
recorded that “this was a dreadful country”, however she also
commented that the train was very nice to travel on. It was also
noted that there were no railway stations along the line, so if you
wanted to leave the train you had to climb down some steps in order
to reach the ground. They broke their journey at Kalgoolie during
the afternoon of November 3rd and decided to have a look around.
Here they did a spot of sightseeing which took them to the
Perseverance Mine where gold was first found in Australia by a man
Patrick Hannan.
On Sunday 8th November they took the tram into Neadlands which was
a pleasant ride along the Swan River. In the evening they went to
hear the band play and Ellen recorded that she did not think the
band was as good as the Wagga Band, and besides she did not care
for the selection of music they were playing.
The following day they did a spot of sight-seeing around Perth and
met up with a Mr. Armstrong who had recently travelled West to East
across Australia, and were able to obtain a few tips from him
regarding the road across the desert. He also described in some
detail stories of the desert crossing, which so impressed the
Anderson’s that they decided to return to Port Augusta for their
car.
On Tuesday 10th November they left Perth in the Transcontinental
train for Port Augusta arriving 3 days later. The Austin, retrieved
from the garage, was prepared for the long journey ahead and
stocked up with supplies. On leaving Port Augusta they headed for
Cowell but decided to make a detour to miss the Yardee Sands which
they had heard were ‘very bad’. They continued onto Cleve and Rudat
where they camped the night.
They commenced their journey on Sunday 15th November and promptly
ran over three snakes, they also encountered a very large kangaroo
whilst on the road to Lock, which they reported was very rough and
sandy. The weather, it was recorded “was dreadfully hot”. They
arrived at Ellinstone at around 6pm, and drove on a further 20
miles where they set up camp.
The following day they continued on towards Streaky Bay, a very
pretty bay, but a very poor town which depended on shipping and
motor mail for its existence. From there they motored on to Murat
Bay which they reached at around 6pm amidst a very heavy thunder
storm. They parked up and remained in the car until the storm
cleared, then drove on a further couple of miles to set up camp. It
continued to rain on and off during the night, but the storm had
cooled the air considerably.
Their next port of call was Thevenard, where fibro cement roads and
Plaster of Paris was made.
(This jetty, built in 1920 was the
first concrete jetty in South Australia).
The Anderson’s recalled that the factory was very large and had its
own pier to accommodate the boats which transported their goods on
to Sydney. They also commented that they “were able to catch a nice
lot of fish from the pier”.
Fowler’s Bay, which was their next destination was described non
too flatteringly as a “one horse town”, where the roads ended at
the border of Western Australia, leading to only rough tracks from
then onwards. However they continued their journey and went through
Whitewells Station, which was described as a shanty of a place
inhabited by a single white man, the others being local natives.
They spent the night at Nullabor – a very lonely place on the
plains.
Into
Western Australia:
Ellen with Aboriginals
The diary entry for Thursday 19th November
reads: “Left Nullabor at 11,30. On the road we came across wombat
burrows. Fred shot two of them, they are like bears to look at and
are supposed to be good to eat. We had sport with two kangaroos, my
word they can go some, beat us in the end. We passed two camel
teams loaded with wool. We met a linesman doing his rounds, a very
funny sight to see him travelling in a buggy and a pair of camels.
From there we went on to Eucla where we camped for the night”. They
had a quiet day at Eucla and went out on a turkey hunt, but were
not able to catch any, but they did manage to shoot a very large
snake. They also played their phonograph to the Aborigines, and
thought it very amusing to see their reactions which ranged from
being ‘concerned’ to ‘laughing’ with amusement – “They thought it
was a mystery boss”. Ellen added further to their amusement by
giving one gin (a name by which aborigine women were referred to),
a hat and a coat – she was apparently so pleased with her gifts
that she danced and sang in appreciation.
They left Eucla with some freshly baked bread, as they were
unlikely to encounter any shops on the road where food could be
purchased. They then continued on to Mundrabilla Station, which was
owned by a Mrs. Ross Watson, a widow with three little children and
were the only white people in the place. After having lunch there
they left for Madura, which at that time was enjoying a long spell
of very hot dry weather, their average rainfall being just 5 inches
per year, an average which had not been reached for 3 years.
Madura Station consisted of a single hut which was occupied by Mr.
Gourdan the owner, all the other inhabitants being Aborigines, At
Madura they had a very fine mineral bore, where the Andersons were
able to have a hot bath and a swim. However in getting out of the
bath Ellen slipped on the slippery ground and broke one of her
toes.
Before they left Madura for Balladonia, Mr. Gourdan killed a beast
for them so that they would have some fresh meat when back on the
road, as the Stations were hundreds of miles apart.
On route to Balladonia the Anderson’s had to drive the Austin up a
very rough gorge where they had to avoid some very big boulders.
There really was no road to speak of, and they discovered that the
last car to go up the gorge had to be towed up with camels. The
rough track and stones caused two of the tyres to puncture, which
had to be repaired before they could continue, but 30 miles further
on Wilfred shot three fairly large wild turkeys.
By Monday 23rd November the Anderson’s had reached Balladonia,
after driving across country, through grass as high as the car,
looking for tracks from car or horse, and getting lost into the
bargain. But with the aid of their compass their route was finally
worked out and they arrived there safely. On the journey they met a
linesman who was working over a hundred miles from home in a place
called Byre near Isralite Bay. They shared some of their fresh meat
with him which was greatly appreciated, as supplies only arrived by
boat every 3 months. Their arrival at Balladonia was aided by
simply following the telegraph wires.
Balladonia was yet another ‘Station’ run by two bachelors, a Mr.
Ponton and a Mr. Mason. All the other inhabitants were
Aborigines.
From Balladonia they drove on to Cook’s Station where they stayed
the night, leaving the following day to Frazers Range where they
encountered some very bad road surfaces. They stopped for lunch at
the Range and then continued on to Norseman which they reached at
6pm. – The first town for 900 miles, and were very pleased with
their achievement.
The date is now Thursday 26th November, and after breaking camp
they pressed on through enormous salt lakes, observing the amazing
mirages on the Ary Lake. En-route they encountered two donkey teams
where they were amused to see a small donkey pulling such big
wagons. There were 30 donkeys in one team and 25 in the
other.
The roads were very bad from Norseman to Coolgardie. and when they
arrived there they took the opportunity to post letters which they
had collected from various people whom they had met on the road.
Coolgardie, was at one time a very prosperous mining town, but had
almost become derelict since mining operations had ceased. They
continued on for a further 15 miles where they camped for the
night.
The Anderson’s continued their epic journey on towards Southern
Cross – another mining town, where they were experimenting on wheat
growing. Ellen commented in her diary that the crop they saw did
not look up to much.
By Saturday 28th November they had arrived at the Slocum’s place at
Wild Catchem. Where they were made very welcome, staying there
until Tuesday 1st December.
They continued their journey to Perth where they arrived at 6pm,
and decided to garage the Austin for the night. The following day
they went sight-seeing around the beaches of Freemantle and
Cottasloe, then went sight-seeing in Perth itself.
A week later they loaded the Austin on board a boat bound for
Melbourne which took them seven days to reach. The Austin was off
loaded after a pleasant trip and they stayed the night with
friends.
They left Melbourne on Sunday the 13th December at 10am, and
reported that the roads to Seymour were particularly bad. They got
to within 2 miles of Benalla when the steering arm broke and the
car got out of control. They dived off the road, over a large heap
of stones and headed straight for a tree, but by some miracle the
stones must have bumped the wheel and forced the car away from the
tree and down into a culvert. Ellen recorded in her diary that she
“took a firm grip and closed her eyes thinking that the end had
come”, but at that very moment they came to a standstill with the
front wheels up a bank and the rear wheels at the bottom of the
culvert. “It was a wonder”, she records, “that the car did not turn
over”. On examination it was found that a rock had gone through the
tyres, and that the chassis had been broken in half.
Undaunted, they decided to stop there the night and dig a trench in
the morning to get the car out.
Being an Austin Twelve it was not surprising that even after such a
bad accident, the Anderson’s were still able to continue for a
further 1½ miles to Benalla where they were able to find a garage
which would carry out temporary repairs to enable them to get
home.
They left Benalla on Tuesday morning after the repairs had been
carried out, and by the afternoon they arrived home safe and sound.
Ellen recorded in her diary: “All’s well that ends well!!”
And so ended the first tour which encompassed much of the coastal
area of Southern Australia.
1926:
The Second Tour - anticlockwise round the entire
continent
(Photograph: Jennie Hanson)
Kerry
Prepared and ready to go, John Lanaghan
wishing Wilfred and Ellen Anderson a safe journey around Australia
in the Austin Twelve-Four. Note ‘Kerry’ the dog in his kennel on
the running board. Kelly however did not make the entire journey as
he later died from a snake bite.
You would have thought that after such a trip the Anderson’s had
satisfied their sense of adventure and were now prepared to settle
down to a rather more sedentary life, but sadly you would be quite
wrong if you though that, as the following year on the 22nd
September they set off again for yet another tour of Australia in
their Austin Twelve-Four, only this time taking an anticlockwise
route around the whole of the continent.
Ellen’s diary entries were less ‘dramatic’ on this occasion and
there were gaps where nothing of any note was found to be worth
recording, and regrettably very few photographs of places or people
have survived. However, the event was recorded in the ‘Austin
Magazine’ of July 1928.
The Anderson’s departed from Wagga Wagga for Sydney on August 31st
1926, the Austin Twelve, a new one, was well equipped and
provisioned for their long and arduous journey around Australia.
They eventually left Sydney on Thursday 22nd September and headed
North to Ravensworth after spending the night with a friend at
Wiseman’s Ferry. Next morning they carried on to Tamworth where
again they stopped for the night.
By the Tuesday they had arrived at Spicer’s Gap where they got held
up on account of the rain, and apparently had had a difficult time
in getting there. The rain continued for some considerable time and
they were held up in the mountains because of it, Ellen recorded in
her diary that “the roads were deplorable, the soil was black and
the tucker getting low”. Whilst holed up, they recorded that “a
single-seater car came along and tried to get up the mountain, but
in doing so it slipped down the side and into a hole”.
By Friday they had not progressed any further and were awaiting a
team of bullocks which eventually towed them, and other vehicles
including a lorry up the mountain. They arrived at Red Bank where,
in spite of the torrential rain they were able to make camp there
for the night.
Into
Queensland:
The following day
they eventually broke camp and moved on towards Brisbane, where
they arrived around lunchtime. They were disappointed to note that
all the shops were closed as it was half-day closing. They motored
on to Glenna which was South of Brisbane and stayed with friends
for dinner. In the afternoon there was a very heavy storm which
prevented them from leaving as planned. As it was they did not
leave until midnight and then they did so in the rain.
By the Monday 3rd October the weather had improved and they were
able to do some shopping and spend some time with the Downey’s
where they were able to gain some useful information on what they
could expect on the next leg of their journey. They stayed for
dinner and later were shown the pictures which the Dorney’s had
taken of their journey around Australia during their
honeymoon.
By Wednesday Ellen recorded that she “had done her washing and
ironing and was feeling tired”. The following day was spent doing
some more shopping, getting things necessary for the trip, and
stayed a further night before setting off. On the Friday they were
asked to pose for photographs for inclusion in the Brisbane Daily
Mail, and were interviewed by the editor Mr. Elkinson.
They left Brisbane about noon on the Saturday and proceeded on
towards Ipswich, and were blessed with good roads, however they had
to take the road through Lowood, which Ellen recorded “was the most
dreadful road she had ever travelled on”. Eighteen miles out from
Towoomba they pitched camp and spent the night.
After leaving Towoomba and arriving at Chinchilli they took the
wrong road, and had to return to Chinchilli after travelling 21
miles, and start again. This time, taking the correct route they
eventually made it to Goombi which was, in their words “a small
railway siding”, where they spent the night.
On the Monday 10th October they left for Roma where they arrived at
4 pm, had a good look round and met up with some friends where they
were able to load up with water and have a cup of tea. They later
drove out to the bore which they lit up especially for the
Anderson’s and were told that the light from the bore could be seen
some 12 to 14 miles away.
Ellen recorded very little over the next few days other than
leaving one place and arriving at another until Sunday 16th October
when they arrived at Cloncurry where Fred needed to remove the
gearbox, stripped out the gears, and fix them. We are not told why
this had to be done or to what extent the gears needed fixing, but
they stayed there until the Monday in temperatures of 120 degrees
of very dry heat before obtaining a few provisions and continuing
on to Devonport where they had a parcel to deliver. Whilst at
Devonport they visited the Molvern Hotel to inspect specimens of
the minerals which had been excavated from nearby.
The next port of call was Duchess, and then on to Dejarra, which
Ellen described as “a town consisting of three tin shacks”. Here
they were able to re-fill the car with enough petrol to take them a
further 900 miles. They pitched camp some 24 miles out of Dejarra
and it was here that Kerry, their dog, got loose during the night
and was bitten by a snake. At first the Andersons could not
understand why the dog appeared to be ill, and by the time they
discovered the cause, it was too late to do anything to save him.
Kerry died about 6 am the following morning.
The loss of Kerry left a deep void in their lives and the Andersons
were upset to the extent that they could not bring themselves to
eat for the rest of the day. He was great company and they felt a
great loss at his passing.
After experiencing some trouble with the starter motor they were
able to press on towards Camooweal and Rankin where they camped the
night.
The
Northern Territories:
Their next stop
was at Alexandria, Brunell Downs and Anthony Lagoon where they
stayed the night with Mr. Mc.Cann the Policeman, and who killed a
goat for them so they could have fresh meat for breakfast. On
leaving Anthony Lagoon they went on to Newcastle Waters where they
camped the night, here, Ellen records there were hundreds of
Aborigines – many of whom were naked!
On Sunday 23rd October they motored on to Daily Waters and camped
at the No.3 bore. They noted that there were lots of camps there
due to the construction of the Darwin to Adelaide Railway
line.
For the next few days their journey took them to Katherine, where
the mosquitoes and caterpillars were troublesome. They were hoping
to swim in the Katherine River but decided not to as they were told
there were crocodiles there. By the Thursday Ellen noted that Fred
was not feeling too well, but they managed to get to the Victoria
Station where they stayed the night and also managed to miss a very
heavy storm.
After leaving Victoria, they motored on to Wave Hill, then
Inverway, and on to Flora where again there was a heavy storm
raging and torrential rain throughout the night. Ellen records that
an inch of rain fell during the night and that the Black Alvra
River which they were intending crossing the following day was in
flood, However they carefully attempted to make the crossing, and
managed to reach the other side through sheer good luck. Ellen
records that the water came over the running boards during the
crossing.
The next few days only recorded the places where they stopped for
the night - Halls Creek, Sousa Downs, Fitzroy Crossing where they
needed to be pulled across by local Aborigines, who would not come
onto the burning hot sand until sundown, during which time they
became well and truly bogged down in the sand and had to spend the
night at the Police Station.
The following day, after being extricated from the sand they
motored on to Livingard where they camped the night. By Sunday 6th
November, they reached Yeda Crossing and once again got themselves
bogged in the river bed sand of the Victoria River. They worked
hard all day and night until 10.30 pm to try and dig the Austin
out, but were worn out as a result and even too tired to
sleep.
The following day they managed to leave the river and drove onto
Broome which they reached during the afternoon. Here they hoped to
fill up with petrol but were unable to obtain any as it needed to
be sent across by boat. They stayed the night at the Star Hotel –
still waiting for the petrol to arrive. As the boat transporting
the petrol had still not arrived they had to stay a further night
at the hotel and decided to spend some time by going to the
cinema.
The boat finally arrived on the Thursday 10th November and they
were able to fill up with petrol and continue on their way, camping
at the telegraph station at Sagrange.
The Austin about to leave
Paldue
The next couple of days were largely
uneventful and they pressed on through Frazer Downs, Hammock
Plains, Naligine, Wallal and on to Paldue where they stayed the
night with a Mr. and Mrs. Thompson, and a Captain Mitchell.
On leaving Paldue, they travelled on to Marble Bar, Nulligine, and
Ethel Creek (Newman). Where Ellen records they obtained some
birds!
By the Saturday 19th November they had reached Meekatharare, where
they were able to collect their mail, and then carried on to Mount
Magnet in the company of Mr. & Mrs. Martin and then stayed the
night at a hotel.
By the Tuesday 22nd November) they had arrived at Norcia, and Ellen
recorded that she was feeling very unwell. They arrived at Perth
the following day, where a doctor was called to examine her. The
doctor (Dr. Heyword) ordered her to go to hospital. Ellen spent the
next seven days in St, John of God Hospital, but we are not told
what was wrong with her. She eventually came out of hospital on
Thursday 1st December. Here Mr. & Mrs Martin left them and
boarded the Transcontinental train for Adelaide.
On Saturday 3rd December Ellen went back to see Dr. Heywood to pay
her bill and also to obtain a tonic, then left Perth for Kalgoolie
which they reached on Tuesday 6th December, and booked into the
Railway Hotel until the following Sunday.
On leaving Kalgoolie they headed for Port Augusta, where they
stayed for a couple of days, then packed the Austin up in readiness
for their journey to Adelaide, which they reached in the afternoon
of Thursday 15th.
The final entries in Ellen’s diary were sparse, and probably
reflected the fatigue which they both must have experienced after
making such an epic journey.
The
final entries read thus:
Friday 16th “Got
to (no place name given – Probably Hamilton), camped the night,
Mosquitoes very bad”.
Saturday 17th. “Left and got near Gelong”.
Sunday 18th. “Got to Melbourne, stayed at the Entwistles for
dinner, left in afternoon for Wagga”.
Monday 19th. “Got to Mangoplah about 4 o’clock – Wagga 6.30”.
Tuesday 20th. “Stayed in Wagga at Elsie’s
place”.
Wednesday 21st. “Left for Sydney”.
Thursday 22nd.
“Got to Sydney”.
And thus ended a
truly epic tour of Australia, in an Austin Twelve, travelling
somewhere in the region of 10,000 miles in an anti-clockwise
direction, over some of the most unforgiving terrain consisting of
unmade roads and precipitous mountain tracks and flooded rivers.
They encountered some of the most extreme driving and weather
conditions known to man. The car, an Austin, only required some
minor repairs throughout the entire trip, which Fred was able to
undertake at the road side, but it came through with flying colours
proving that it was a truly dependable motor car. Why they did it?
We shall probably never know. They were certainly not the first,
and probably not the last to circumnavigate the continent of
Australia.
___________________
Page from the Austin &
Advocate Magazine dated July 1928 (two years after the event) which
carried an account of the Anderson’s epic drive around
Australia.
I
am indebted to Jennifer Hanson for allowing us to share her Great
Grandparent’s amazing journeys, and for supplying the photographs
and copies of the diaries which Ellen kept, covering both the tours
and from which this article has been drafted and
illustrated.
Jim Stringer