Thomas Petrie
Encyclopedia
Thomas Petrie was an Australia
n explorer, grazier and friend of Aboriginals
.
Petrie was born at Edinburgh
, fourth son of Andrew Petrie
and brother of John
. His family travelled to Sydney
, arriving in October 1831 and his father entered the government service as a supervisor of building. They moved to Moreton Bay
(subsequently Brisbane
) in 1837, where Thomas was educated by a convict clerk and allowed to mix freely with Aboriginal
children.
He learnt to speak the local language, Turrbal
and was encouraged to share in all Aboriginal activities. At 14 he participated in a walkabout
to a feast in the Bunya Mountains
. He was accepted by the Aboriginals and was often used as a messenger and invited on exploration expeditions. He also learned about surveying
, bushcraft
and the local geography while travelling with his father.
In 1851 Petrie prospected for gold
in the Turon
region of New South Wales
and spent the next five years on Victorian goldfields, "finding only enough gold to make a ring". He returned to Brisbane and married Elizabeth Campbell in 1859. He bought a ten square miles (26 km²) property in the Pine Creek district and named it Murrumba, an aboriginal word meaning "good place". Aboriginals helped him to clear his land and build his farm buildings. He continued to look for new timber and places suitable for European settlement, became the first white man to climb Buderim Mountain in 1862 and surveyed a route from Cleveland
to Eight Mile Plains
. He also arranged for some Aboriginals to welcome the Duke of Edinburgh
in 1868. In 1877 the Douglas
ministry established Queensland's first Aboriginal reserve on Bribie Island with Petrie as its chief adviser and overseer, but the reserve was closed in 1878 by colonial secretary Palmer
.
Petrie died at Murrumba, survived by his wife who died aged 90 on 30 September 1926 and by two sons and five daughters of their nine children. Though Murrumba had been reduced to 3000 acres (12 km²) the family kept the property until 1952. In 1910 the name of the North Pine district was changed to Petrie
in his honour and the next year a free-stone monument was erected in the township and unveiled by Sir William MacGregor
. There is also a new suburb in the area named Murrumba Downs
.
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n explorer, grazier and friend of Aboriginals
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
.
Petrie was born at Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
, fourth son of Andrew Petrie
Andrew Petrie
Andrew Petrie was a builder, architect and Australian pioneer.Petrie was born in Fife, Scotland and trained as a builder in Edinburgh, where he married Mary Cuthbertson in 1821. John Dunmore Lang brought him, his wife and four sons to Sydney in 1831 with other Scottish mechanics to form the...
and brother of John
John Petrie
John "Jocky" Petrie was a Scottish football player who played for Arbroath F.C..He holds the record for the most goals ever scored in a senior British football game with 13 goals. This occurred during Arbroath's famous 36–0 victory over Bon Accord F.C...
. His family travelled to Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
, arriving in October 1831 and his father entered the government service as a supervisor of building. They moved to Moreton Bay
Moreton Bay
Moreton Bay is a bay on the eastern coast of Australia 45 km from Brisbane, Queensland. It is one of Queensland's most important coastal resources...
(subsequently Brisbane
Brisbane
Brisbane is the capital and most populous city in the Australian state of Queensland and the third most populous city in Australia. Brisbane's metropolitan area has a population of over 2 million, and the South East Queensland urban conurbation, centred around Brisbane, encompasses a population of...
) in 1837, where Thomas was educated by a convict clerk and allowed to mix freely with Aboriginal
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
children.
He learnt to speak the local language, Turrbal
Turrbal
The Turrbal are a tribe of Australian Aboriginal people who inhabited the region around the city of Brisbane before European settlement of Australia. Tom Petrie, an early pioneer of Brisbane, shows the kind and trustworthy nature of the Turrbal people. He demonstrates how they were forgiving, even...
and was encouraged to share in all Aboriginal activities. At 14 he participated in a walkabout
Walkabout
The walkabout is a purported Australian aboriginal ritual of manhood.Walkabout may also refer to:- Art :*Walkabout , a 1959 book written by James Vance Marshall, set in the Australian outback...
to a feast in the Bunya Mountains
Bunya Mountains
The Bunya Mountains are a distinctive set of peaks forming an isolated section of the Great Dividing Range in southern Queensland. The mountain range forms the northern edge of the Darling Downs near Bell and Dalby. The mountains are south of Kingaroy and just to the south west of Nanango...
. He was accepted by the Aboriginals and was often used as a messenger and invited on exploration expeditions. He also learned about surveying
Surveying
See Also: Public Land Survey SystemSurveying or land surveying is the technique, profession, and science of accurately determining the terrestrial or three-dimensional position of points and the distances and angles between them...
, bushcraft
Bushcraft
Bushcraft is a long-term extension of survival skills. A popular term for wilderness skills in Canada, The UK, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, the term was popularised in the southern hemisphere by Les Hiddins in Australia as well as in the northern hemisphere by Mors Kochanski and...
and the local geography while travelling with his father.
In 1851 Petrie prospected for gold
Australian gold rushes
The Australian gold rush started in 1851 when prospector Edward Hammond Hargraves claimed the discovery of payable gold near Bathurst, New South Wales, at a site Edward Hargraves called Ophir.Eight months later, gold was found in Victoria...
in the Turon
Turon River
The Turon River is located in New South Wales. The Turon River is well renowned because it was the site of one of Australia's first alluvial gold rushes. During the gold rush Chinese migrant workers built a Water Race to bring water to mining operations along sections of the Turon River. Many parts...
region of New South Wales
New South Wales
New South Wales is a state of :Australia, located in the east of the country. It is bordered by Queensland, Victoria and South Australia to the north, south and west respectively. To the east, the state is bordered by the Tasman Sea, which forms part of the Pacific Ocean. New South Wales...
and spent the next five years on Victorian goldfields, "finding only enough gold to make a ring". He returned to Brisbane and married Elizabeth Campbell in 1859. He bought a ten square miles (26 km²) property in the Pine Creek district and named it Murrumba, an aboriginal word meaning "good place". Aboriginals helped him to clear his land and build his farm buildings. He continued to look for new timber and places suitable for European settlement, became the first white man to climb Buderim Mountain in 1862 and surveyed a route from Cleveland
Cleveland, Queensland
Cleveland is a suburb located approximately east-south-east of Brisbane, the capital of the Australian state of Queensland, and is the council seat for the Redland City local government area...
to Eight Mile Plains
Eight Mile Plains, Queensland
Eight Mile Plains is a southern suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is located some 13 kilometres from the Brisbane central business district....
. He also arranged for some Aboriginals to welcome the Duke of Edinburgh
Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha
Alfred, Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha was the third Duke of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha, and reigned from 1893 to 1900. He was also a member of the British Royal Family, the second son and fourth child of Queen Victoria and Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha...
in 1868. In 1877 the Douglas
John Douglas (Queensland politician)
John Douglas CMG was an Anglo-Australian politician and Premier of Queensland.Douglas was born in London, the seventh son of Henry Alexander Douglas and his wife Elizabeth Dalzell, daughter of the Earl of Carnwarth...
ministry established Queensland's first Aboriginal reserve on Bribie Island with Petrie as its chief adviser and overseer, but the reserve was closed in 1878 by colonial secretary Palmer
Arthur Hunter Palmer
Sir Arthur Hunter Palmer KCMG was an Irish-Australian politician and a Premier of Queensland.Palmer was born in Armagh, Ireland, the son of Lieutenant Arthur Palmer, R.N., and his wife, Emily née Hunter. Palmer was educated at Youghal Grammar School and a private tutor in Dublin...
.
Petrie died at Murrumba, survived by his wife who died aged 90 on 30 September 1926 and by two sons and five daughters of their nine children. Though Murrumba had been reduced to 3000 acres (12 km²) the family kept the property until 1952. In 1910 the name of the North Pine district was changed to Petrie
Petrie, Queensland
Petrie is a suburb north of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. Its Local Government Area is the Moreton Bay Region. It is located in the North Pine River section of its local council 24 kilometres north of Brisbane City....
in his honour and the next year a free-stone monument was erected in the township and unveiled by Sir William MacGregor
William MacGregor
Sir William MacGregor GCMG, CB was a Lieutenant-Governor of British New Guinea, Governor of Newfoundland and Governor of Queensland.-Early life:...
. There is also a new suburb in the area named Murrumba Downs
Murrumba Downs, Queensland
Murrumba Downs is a suburb north of Brisbane, the capital city of Queensland, Australia, and is located east of Kallangur on the Bruce Highway 24 km north of the Brisbane central business district...
.