Captain Charles Sturt was born in India in 1795. He came
to Australia in 1827, and soon after undertook to solve the mystery of where
the inland rivers of New South Wales flowed. Because they appeared to flow
towards the centre of the continent, the belief was held that they emptied into
an inland sea. Sturt first traced the Macquarie River as far as the Darling,
which he named after Governor Darling. Pleased with Sturt's discoveries, the following
year Governor Darling sent Sturt to trace the course of the Murrumbidgee River,
and to see whether it joined to the Darling. Sturt followed the Murrumbidgee in
a whaleboat and discovered that the Murrumbidgee River flowed into the Murray
(previously named the Hume).
Sturt continued to trace the course of the Murray southwards, arriving at Lake Alexandrina, from which he could see the open sea of the southern coast, in February 1830. However, the expedition then had to face an agonising journey rowing back up the Murray against the current. The men rowed in shifts from dawn until dusk each day, low on rations, through extreme heat, and against the floodwaters heading downstream. In March 1830 they reached the junction of the Murray and Murrumbidgee Rivers. By the time they reached their depot at Maude on the Murrumbidgee, they had rowed and sailed 3,000 km on Australia's inland rivers, with no loss of life. The party reached Wantabadgery Station at the point of starvation, where they recovered until returning to Sydney on 25 May 1830.
Sturt's discoveries were significant, for they allowed for the development of paddle-steamer transportation of goods and passengers along Australia's inland waterways. The exploration also allowed for the opening up of more fertile pasture and grazing land in southern Australia.
Sturt continued to trace the course of the Murray southwards, arriving at Lake Alexandrina, from which he could see the open sea of the southern coast, in February 1830. However, the expedition then had to face an agonising journey rowing back up the Murray against the current. The men rowed in shifts from dawn until dusk each day, low on rations, through extreme heat, and against the floodwaters heading downstream. In March 1830 they reached the junction of the Murray and Murrumbidgee Rivers. By the time they reached their depot at Maude on the Murrumbidgee, they had rowed and sailed 3,000 km on Australia's inland rivers, with no loss of life. The party reached Wantabadgery Station at the point of starvation, where they recovered until returning to Sydney on 25 May 1830.
Sturt's discoveries were significant, for they allowed for the development of paddle-steamer transportation of goods and passengers along Australia's inland waterways. The exploration also allowed for the opening up of more fertile pasture and grazing land in southern Australia.
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