In 2013 Paul Terry published what was rightly considered the most definitive account of the life of Andrew George Scott up to that point. Drawing on many sources, some of which had only recently been discovered, Terry’s In Search of … Continue reading Moonlite by Garry Linnell (Review)
“I, Maurice J. O’Connor, being the medical officer of the gaol at Darlinghurst, do hereby declare and certify that I have this day witnessed the execution of Andrew George Scott, alias Moonlight, lately convicted and duly sentenced to death at … Continue reading The Execution of Scott and Rogan
Ballarat Courier (Vic. : 1869 – 1883; 1914 – 1918), Tuesday 6 January 1880, page 4 CAPTAIN MOONLITE, THE CONDEMNED BUSHRANGER. BY SILVERPEN. As every item of news anent the Wantabagery bushranger is just now read with painful interest by … Continue reading Spotlight: Captain Moonlite, the condemned bushranger. By Silverpen.
With November 2019 seeing the 140th anniversary of the Wantabadgery Siege, the decision was made to make a pilgrimage to Wantabadgery. As no formal acknowledgement of the anniversary or notification of any organised commemoration thereof had been announced, I decided … Continue reading A Guide to Australian Bushranging on tour, 2019 [Blog]
One of the men involved in the story of Captain Moonlite is Thomas Williams, the alias of Frank Johns. Johns was the son of a pious Ballarat family who had been employed as a confectioner before engaging in a career … Continue reading Spotlight: Frank Johns’ Statement
On a stormy November night, six rumpled figures try to shelter inside swags. The grey woollen blankets that trap the rapidly depleting warmth from the quivering bodies are hardly protected by the oilskin sheets that form a waterproof crust and … Continue reading Wantabadgery: 140 years on
What follows is a report on the inquest conducted into the deaths of the bushrangers James Nesbitt and Gus Wernicke along with a brief account of the condition of Constable Webb-Bowen following his wounding at McGlede’s farm. While some details, … Continue reading Spotlight: Inquest on the Bodies of Nesbitt and Wernicke
The mysterious death of F. M. Bates saw Captain Moonlite dragged once more into the public spotlight and would set him on the path to becoming a bushranger… Continue reading Spotlight: Francis Marion Bates
