Christie Palmerston

Christie Palmerston

Born 1850 or 1851
Australia
Died January 15, 1897(1897-01-15)
Kuala Pilah, Malaysia
Occupation Prospector and explorer of North Queensland
Spouse(s) Teresa Rooney
Children 1 daughter

Christie Palmerston (1850/51 to 15 January 1897) was an Australian explorer and prospector in North Queensland. He led several expeditions during the last quarter of the nineteenth century including the discovery of a route along the Mowbray River, which eventually led to the founding of Port Douglas.[1]

Early life

Palmerston was born in Melbourne during 1850 or 1851 to Jerome Carandini, the Marquis of Sarzano and Marie Carandini, an Australian opera singer. Palmerston claims to have been baptised Cristofero Palmerston Carandini.[1][2]

Prospecting and early expeditions

Palmerston came to Queensland as a young man to work on a station in the Broad Sound area and then worked in the Palmer River gold rush of 1872-1874. However, it was not until around 1876 during the Hodgkinson River gold Rush that Palmerston began to be known as a pathfinder.[1]

During the 1880s, large parts of far North Queensland were still covered in dense rainforest.[3]

As trade increased from Hodgkinson, Cooktown merchants began to worry that a new port at Cairns would take over the majority of the trade. As a result, in 1877 the merchants backed Palmerston to cut a track from the goldfields to a new port at Island Point. As Palmerston became more well known as a path cutter, he embarked on more explorations, including his notable discovery of a route along the Mowbray River, which contributed to the founding of Port Douglas.[1]

Later life and death

Palmerston settled down in Townsville and married Teresa Rooney at St Joseph's Church on 6 December 1886, they had one daughter. Palmerston moved to Borneo and then Malaya where he contracted fever in the jungle and died at Kuala Pilah on 15 January 1897.[1]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 Bolton, G.C. "Palmerston, Christie (1850-1897)". Australian Dictionary of Biography. Canberra: Australian National University. Retrieved 31 October 2011.
  2. ↑ Woolston, F.P.; Colliver, F.S. (1967). "Christie Palmerston — A North Queensland Pioneer, Prospector and Explorer". "Queensland Heritage". 1 (7): 30–34. Retrieved 31 October 2011.
  3. ↑ Farnfield, Jean (1978). "Legend of North Queensland — Christie Palmerston (1851-1897)". Lectures on North Queensland: Third series. Townsville, QLD: James Cook University, History Department. pp. 69–84. ISBN 978-0-909714-94-9.
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