Died on Expedition

Eight men died during the Victorian Exploring Expedition, seven Europeans and one Aborigine. In the history of Australian inland exploration, only Leichhardt's third expedition of 1847 and Kennedy's second expedition to Cape York in 1848 resulted in similar numbers of fatalities amongst explorers, although many expeditions resulted in large numbers of fatalities amongst the indigenous population. Major Thomas Mitchell, Captain Frederick Walker and the Jardine brothers, Frank and Alex were particularly notorious for the large numbers of indigenous fatalities they caused.

The Victorian Exploring Expedition

The first to die was Charley Gray on Wednesday 17th April 1861, less than eight months after leaving Melbourne and only five months after leaving the settled districts of New South Wales. The last man to die on the expedition was Robert O'Hara Burke, on or about Saturday 1st July 1861.

Explorers who died on the Expedition


	Charley Gray	Wednesday 17th April 1861	Polygonum Swamp (Lake Massacre ?) (Exact location undetermined).

	Charles Stone	Monday 22nd April 1861	Koorliatto Waterhole, Bulloo River.

	William Purcell	Tuesday 23rd April 1861	Koorliatto Waterhole, Bulloo River.

	Dr Ludwig Becker	Monday 29th April 1861	Koorliatto Waterhole, Bulloo River.

	William Patten	Wednesday 5th June 1861	Desolation Camp, Rat Point. (Exact location undetermined).

	William John Wills	Friday 30th June or Saturday 1st July 1861	Breerily Waterhole, Coopers Creek.

	Robert O'Hara Burke	Saturday 1st July 1861	Burkes Waterhole, Coopers Creek.

Aborigines who died as a direct result of the Expedition


	"Mr Shirt", a Bandjigali or Karenggapa Murri, shot by William Wright,

		Saturday 27th April 1861,	Koorliatto Waterhole, Bulloo River.

For more details of the explorer's graves, follow these links.

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Burke & Wills Web
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© Dave Phoenix, 2008