Museum Metadata Exchange

Names

Name PrimaryJohn McDouall Stuart Collection

IDs

ID LocalMM 11

ID Urihttp://migration.historysa.com.au/collections/john-mcdouall-stuart-collection

Descriptions

Brief DescriptionA sub-collection of the Historical Relics Collection, these objects all relate to the explorer John McDouall Stuart or to those that accompanied him on his six expeditions. The collection ranges from personal items, such as a scarf ring and smoking cap, through to exploration equipment, pieces of trees, a pocket book and fire arms. There are just under 50 objects in this collection.

SignificanceJohn McDouall Stuart was the first European to successfully cross Australia from south to north and back, from Adelaide to Van Diemen Gulf. Stuart and his 'companions' completed this crossing in 1862. Stuart had undertaken five previous expeditions, three of which were attempts to cross the continent. Following Stuart's successful exploration South Australia gained control of the Northern Territory and established a settlement at Darwin. Stuart's crossing directly influenced the later route of the Australian Overland Telegraph Line, which in 1872 connected Darwin to Port Augusta, and thus Adelaide, and allowed faster communication between Australia and the rest of the world. There was significant excitement in Adelaide at the time of Stuart's successful crossing, and the collection includes a flag used to welcome Stuart and his team back to Adelaide. The collection is material evidence of Stuart's life and explorations.

AccessA Migration Museum collection. Access to collection items held in Museum Stores is by appointment only.

Subjects

pontEquipment; Firearms; Personal effects

aptExpeditions; Exploration; Explorers; Personal effects

scotExploration; Explorers

localExploration; South Australia

person_orgJohn McDouall Stuart; Migration Museum, South Australia

Coverage Spatial

TextSouth Australia; Australia

Coverage Temporal

From1840

To1890

Related Collections

isPartof

Dates

Date Record Updated2012-12-12 16:47

Date Created in MME2011-03-22 15:47