Genealogy Australia

Written by Thorvald Peter Ludwig Weitemeyer, the book describes his adventures in Queensland between 1871 and 1880. He was born in Copenhagen in 1850, the second son of a builder. At age twenty-one he ran away to Hamburg where he boarded the Humboldt bound for Queensland (1872). After fourteen years absence from home without contacting his family he compiled a manuscript of his travels to send to his father – it arrived the day after his death.

That manuscript is largely repeated in this book – it includes a whole chapter (22 pages) of his experience on the emigrant ship, his arrival in Queensland, gaining colonial experience, Townsville, on the Herbert River, Ravenswood, shanty-keeping, prospecting, and the Palmer. It gives us a wonderful glimpse into life on the ship and the struggles new settlers had with life in Queensland.

'What a motley crew we were, Germans, Danes, Swedes, Norwegians, a Russian Finn, and an Icelander. There were many nationalities, but in the majority of cases extreme poverty was evident in their dress and stamped upon their faces, and it was easy to see that the same spirit of recklessness which filled me had somehow also been instilled into them. Nearly everybody had guns, revolvers, and knives, which were promptly taken from us as we stepped on board.'

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