Stirling Castle (brig)
The Stirling Castle was a 351-ton brig under the command of a Captain James Fraser, that ran aground on Swaines Reef, near the site of the present day city of Rockhampton, Queensland, while travelling from Sydney to Singapore. After running aground, the surviving members of the crew, including Fraser and his wife Eliza, managed to journey to the nearby island of K'gari, where they were captured by hostile Australian Aborigines. James Fraser died while in their captivity (accounts differ as to whether he died due to starvation, or as a result of being speared), but some members of his crew survived and were later rescued by a Lt. Charles Otter[1]. Eliza Fraser later returned to England where her services as a storyteller proved to be very much in demand.
The Stirling Castle left Greenock, Scotland with John Dunmore Lang's "mechanics" bound for the colony of Sydney, Australia. One family that was on board this trip in 1831 was the Petrie family that became a prominent Queensland family after arriving in Moreton Bay penal settlement in 1837.
In memory of Fraser, K'gari Island was renamed Fraser Island after this incident[2].
References
- ↑ Williams, Fred (2002). Princess K'Gari's Fraser Island: a history of Fraser Island. pp. 31–35. ISBN 0958103402. http://books.google.com.au/books?id=2tqPVekm6vMC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA31#v=onepage&q=&f=false.
- ↑ Schaffer, Kay (1995). [0521495776 In the wake of first contact: the Eliza Fraser stories]. CUP Archive. pp. 4. ISBN 0521495776. 0521495776.
| 40px | This article about a specific civilian ship or boat is a stub. You can help Ship Spotting World by expanding it. |
