John Mackay (explorer)

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John Mackay

John Mackay (born March 26, 1839 in Inverness , Scotland , † March 11, 1914 in Brisbane , Queensland , Australia ) was an explorer, sailor and harbor master . The place Mackay in Queensland is named after him.

Early life

John Mackay was the son of George Mackay, a farmer, and his wife Ann, nee Munro. He went to school at the Free Church Academy in Inverness. John Mackay left Scotland on a ship to Melbourne in 1854 . A year later he and his family went to New South Wales . There he grew up on his father's farm between Armidale and Uralla .

In 1859 Mackay looked for gold on the Rocky River near Armidale. The gold rush ended in 1860.

Explorer

In 1860 John Mackay led an expedition to unknown territory north of Armindale. In January 1860 he and his expedition team left this place and arrived in Rockhampton on March 2nd . Mackay led the expedition in search of arable land along the Isaac River . They found an area suitable for ranching that corresponds to what is now the Mackay region . Mackay and another explorer also found a pass trail that crosses the Clarke Range .

Late life

Headstone of John Mackay in Balmoral Cemetery , Brisbane

John Mackay's discoveries received little recognition in Australia, so he wanted to explore New Guinea . He did not succeed in implementing this project. From 1883 to 1889 he was appointed harbourmaster of Cooktown . In 1883 he married Marion, née McLennon, in Cooktown, with whom he had two sons and two daughters. From 1892 to 1902 he was harbor master in Brisbane . In 1902 he was appointed to the board of directors of the Queensland Marine Board . From 1912 he was employed as a postmaster . He died in 1914 and was buried in Balmoral Cemetery, Brisbane.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ mackay.qld.gov.au : History of the Mackay Region , in English, accessed April 16, 2012
  2. ↑ a b c adb.anu.edu.au : JA Nilsson: Mackay, John (1839–1914) , in English, accessed April 15, 2013
personal data
SURNAME Mackay, John
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Scottish explorer and sailor in Australia
DATE OF BIRTH March 26, 1839
PLACE OF BIRTH Inverness , Scotland
DATE OF DEATH March 11, 1914
Place of death Brisbane , Queensland , Australia