→ Robert William Archdale Blencowe 1833 London Age: 25; Point Henry (Geelong), Victoria, on December 1, 1858.
Early Life in london
Robert William Archdale Blencowe was born on 7 June 1833, on Walton Street in London. He was the first child—and ultimately the only son—born to the Reverend William Moulton Blencowe and his wife, Maynard Ann Rochfort. At the time of Robert’s birth, his father was the Rector of Shawell in Leicestershire but was temporarily officiating baptisms at St. George’s Church in Hanover Square, located in the heart of Mayfair, City of Westminster. This prominent church was just a short distance from the family’s residence on Walton Street, Chelsea. Robert was baptized at St. George’s on June 30, 1833, most likely by his own father.
Robert grew up in a privileged environment, descending from a distinguished lineage of physicians, Doctors of Divinity, and Oxford University graduates. By the time of the 1841 Census, an eight-year-old Robert was living in Ashurst, Kent, with his mother. Tragically, his father passed away that same year in Dawlish, Devon, and his mother died just eight years later in 1849 in Bath, Somerset. Left an orphan, the 1851 Census records the seventeen-year-old Robert living at Grosvenor Square, London, as a pupil under the care of George Woodhouse, the Vicar of Albrighton, Shropshire.
Emigration and the Victorian Goldfields
In 1852, monumental news swept across England: gold had been discovered in Victoria, Australia. While it is difficult to measure exactly how much this news gripped Robert, he joined thousands of adventurous young British men who decided to seek their fortunes across the globe. At the age of twenty-five, Robert paid his passage and embarked on a grand journey.
In the late summer of 1858, Robert boarded the Ellen Stuart in Liverpool. The vessel was an impressive, American-built clipper ship frequently chartered by prominent British emigration firms like the Black Ball Line and the White Star Line. A full-rigged ship featuring three square-rigged masts, the Ellen Stuart was engineered to harness the powerful winds of the Southern Ocean, shaving weeks off the travel times of traditional merchant vessels. After a grueling deep-ocean voyage, the ship arrived in Victoria, dropping anchor at Point Henry, Geelong, on 1 December 1858.
Upon arrival, shipping records listed Robert’s occupation simply as a “Labourer”. This status was likely a strategic choice or preference to secure quick passage and immediate employment in the bustling colony. Like many men his age arriving in the midst of the gold rush, it is highly probable that Robert headed straight for the goldfields.
The recorded details:- 1858-12-01; Ship name: ELLEN STUART; Origin code: B; Arrival year: 1858; Gender: M; Arrival month: DEC; Page: 4; Native place: ENG The ship Ellen Stuart, which departed from Liverpool, docked at Point Henry (Geelong), Victoria, on December 1, 1858.
Jan 1859-Dec 1865
In the six years between arriving at Geelong, Victoria and arriving in Caldwell, Queenlsand we have no records of him and we can only speculate to where he traveled. We know from his destination in 1865, Robert covered the 3,250 kms by ship from Geelong to the Far North. This was likely several voyages as he progressed north seeking opportunity. We do not have his stopping points, but they could well have included Sydney and Brisbane and included stays of some period of time in these locations.
Cardwell Queensland January 1866
By early 1866, Robert had reached the absolute frontier of British settlement. On January 27, 1866, the schooner Lily dropped anchor at Rockingham Bay. As reported shortly after in the Queensland Times, Robert arrived alongside two notable travel companions: a Mr. Low and Charles James Scott. Scott shared a remarkably similar gentility of background with Robert, and the two had likely met while transiting through Sydney or Brisbane.
The Cardwell that greeted these young “Esquires” was an isolated outpost consisting of little more than a survey office, John Morrisey’s Royal Hotel, and a scattering of basic timber shacks, housing a total population of roughly 100 to 150 people. Life there was precarious; a contemporary newspaper account noted that while local gardens could provide tropical vegetables, basic provisions were dangerously scarce:
“The baker is using the last bag of flour, and the store is without any of the necessaries of life… We have had to drink our tea, if we are lucky to have any (no coffee has been in the port for months), sweetened with molasses… Our principal inhabitants have to send down south for stores.”
Despite the rough conditions, Robert recognized the immense long-term potential of the settlement. The Queensland government was desperate to secure and populate its northern territory, offering land under various Land Acts for roughly £1 per acre, often accepting “Land Orders” issued to immigrants as incentives. Capitalizing on this, Robert purchased Town Lot 19 on March 22, 1866, for £38, and later expanded his holdings to include Town Lots 1, 5, and 12. The records show this Purchased Town Lot 19 on 22 March 1865 for £38 (Port Denison Times). The Port Denison Times and Kennedy District Advertiser (Bowen, Qld. : 1864 – 1900)
The 1866 Expedition and Geographical Legacy
Cardwell was seen as the ‘gateway to the North Queensland Interior, and this was subject that very soon Robert Blencowe was enticed to explore.
Cardwell had poor pastural land and there were stories that better land existed in land across the Great Dividing Range that separates the Eastern Seabord of Australia from its interior.
While Cardwell possessed an excellent natural harbor, its immediate coastal land was poor for pastoral grazing. Rumors persisted that spectacular, fertile country lay just beyond the rugged mountain range blocking the coast from the interior. Motivated by a mix of practical exploration and the timeless urge to see “what was over the hills,” a small expeditionary party was formed in the winter of 1866. The group consisted of Native Police Inspector Murray, Charles James Scott, Mr. Dulluchy, four Indigenous trackers, and Robert Blencowe.
Setting out from Robert’s property at Town Lot 19, the team traveled west, confronting the steep, rainforest-choked slopes of the Kirrama Range—a formidable section of the Great Dividing Range. Their goal was to blaze a viable dray road to link the coast to the interior.
Upon successfully cresting the Great Divide in August 1866, the landscape shifted dramatically into an open eucalyptus plateau. An account published in the Queensland Daily Guardian on 19 September, 1866, described the awe-inspiring terrain they encountered:
“On getting to the open country at the back of the range, they came on most magnificent country, consisting of rolling downs lightly timbered, with abundance of running and permanent water… To the westward they saw fine basaltic sheep country, with black soil and chocolate plains.”
Tracking a natural waterway across this high plateau, the party discovered a spectacular creek that led them directly to the edge of the breathtaking, 300-meter-deep Herbert River Gorge. There, the water plummeted violently over a massive precipice. In recognition of his role in the expedition, the party permanently mapped and named these landmarks Blencoe Creek and Blencoe Falls—carving Robert’s family name forever into the geography of North Queensland.
Crossing the Great Divide 1866
A first hand account from one of the party of the trip appears in the Queensland Daily Guardian Wednesday 19 September 1866.
CARDWELL.
A gentleman who arrived in Bowen from Cardwell by the Evening, on Sunday last, has given us (Port Denison Times) the following information ‘ Tho town is still progressing slowly but surely. The streets are being cleared and otherwise improved. All those who havo remained in Cardwcll have been and still are earning good wages.
Mr. Davidson has ploughed up about 10 acres of his sugar plantation, aud has a few acres planted with cane, and is expecting moro cano by next vessel, Tho growth far exceeds all his anticipations. Mr. Davidson intends to employ black labor, and has sent orders for coolies to to arrivo during tho present year. Inspector Murray, N.P., Messrs. Charles Scott, Blencowe, Dulluchy and four black trackers went over the new road, and ascertained that a very good road might be made with some little outlay. On getting to tho open country at the back of the range, they came on most magnificent country, consisting of rolling downs lightly timbered, with abundance of running and permanent water. To the westward they saw fino basaltic sheep country, with block soil and chocolate plains. The scenery is very grand. On the Herbert there is a picturesque watterfall of about 300 foot, and on a creek running into the river below this fall there is anothoer waterfall of about -100 feet. This creek was named after one of the party. Such scenery as this must be truly refreshing to anyone who has been accustomed to see nothing better than tho sandy beds of rivers and empty waterholes, and we really think it would be worth while to take a trip, were it only to gaze once more on a by no means insignificant cataract. We think that with tho advantage our Rockingham Bay friends possess in the way of fine scenery, good grazing country, rich agricultural soil, and a splendid harbour, they ought to go ahead little faster than they have done hitherto ; and we have no doubt thuat, if they exert themselves in a spirited manner to open tho now road, they will soon have a large amount of traffic coming into their port which is now forced to go elsewhere. We commend to their consideration the saying, “The land is worth as muoh as the people in it are worth.” The finest country in creation Is worth nothing if the pcoplo in it lack the pluck and enterprise necessary to make the most of it. Some men who have been over the oountry express themselves very sanguine of finding gold, and intend shortly to prospect over the Range.
.
Tragedy and Evacuation South
The triumph of the expedition was cut short by disaster. During the grueling traverse through the dry interior, Robert contracted a severe case of what locals called “Colonial Fever”. In 19th-century Australia, this term served as a catch-all diagnosis for several acute illnesses, but given his symptoms and the multi-month timeline of his decline, the true culprit was almost certainly Typhoid fever. Typhoid ran rampant through the frontier, easily contracted from drinking stagnant or contaminated water from inland waterholes fouled by livestock.
By the time the party returned to Cardwell, Robert was desperately ill. With no sophisticated medical infrastructure available in the remote north, his companions made the urgent decision to evacuate him south. He was carried onto a coastal steamer for a painful, multi-week voyage stretching roughly 750 nautical miles down the coastline, enduring transit stops at Bowen and Rockhampton before arriving at the Brisbane River wharves. From Brisbane, he was transferred to a shallow-draft paddle-steamer for a final, grueling several-hour journey up the winding Brisbane and Bremer Rivers to the inland hub of Ipswich.
Robert’s destination was the Ipswich General Hospital. Opened in March 1860, this two-story brick facility topped with a slate roof was designed by prominent colonial architect Charles Tiffin. It was widely considered the most advanced, dedicated medical institution capable of handling severe illnesses coming out of the colony’s interior. Conditions inside were reflective of the era: lighting was provided by simple candles and lamps, heating came from open fireplaces, and water had to be manually hauled from the river or collected into a brick tank from the roof.
Medical treatments for severe fevers in 1866 were primitive and punishing, consisting heavily of bloodletting, skin blistering, and massive doses of alcohol or quinine to shock the fever out of the system. Exhausted by his travels, the tropical climate, and the ravages of Typhoid, Robert’s body simply gave out. He passed away at the hospital on 1 November 1866, at the young age of thirty-two.
Sadly, after surviving the grueling voyage from Liverpool on the Ellen Stuart in 1858 and taking a trip into the absolute frontier of area around Cardwell, Robert’s body simply gave out.
Death
Death recorded as 1 November 1866, Reported in Queensland Daily Guardian on Tuesday 6 November 1866, page 2
The Settlement of the Estate
Because Robert died without leaving a valid will, his estate entered probate as an intestacy case, with records filed in the Brisbane Court over the following months. On Wednesday, 12 June 1867, the matter came before Mr. Justice Lutwyche in the Supreme Court Chambers.
A lawyer, Mr. Paul, formally requested letters of administration on behalf of Robert’s two surviving sisters in England, Penelope and Dora Blencowe. Because the sisters were living thousands of miles away, they legally appointed the prominent explorer and politician George Elphinstone Dalrymple to act as their local attorney and manage the disposal of Robert’s properties and assets. Justice Lutwyche granted the administration of the estate, on the sole condition that an additional affidavit be filed proving that both of Robert’s parents had already deceased.
With his passing, this particular family branch of Oxford scholars and physicians ended on the rugged edge of the Australian frontier, leaving behind an enduring geographical legacy in the thundering waters of Blencoe Falls.
Timeline
| Event | Date and Place | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Birth of Robert W A Blencowe | 7 Jun 1833, Walton St, London | Son of William Moulton Blencowe, b. 16 May 1804 d. 1841, Dawlish, Devon years) Mother Maynard Ann Rochfort, b. 20 Jan 1806, Calcutta, West Bengal, India d. 1 Sep 1849, Bath, Somerset, |
| Baptism | 30 June 1833, St George’s, Hanover Square, London. | Probaly Baptised by Father as he was Minister of DSt Georges at the time |
| Census 1841 | Ashurst, Kent | Aged 8; living with his mother Maynard Blencowe 12 Calotone Kent 40 Hannah Betcher 30 Hariett Bauyher 20 Amelia Goodwin 20 Phebe Brown 16 Dniel Mansbridge 20 Darthea Rochford 60 Gusbulee Rochford 36 Penelope Blencowe 16 Dara Blencowe 13 |
| Census 1851 | Grosvenor Square, Middlesex | Aged 17; recorded as a pupil born in Grosvenor Square, Middlesex, living with George Woodhouse (Vicar of Albrighton), Shropshire. |
| Emigration | 1 Dec 1858, Point Henry (Geelong), Victoria, | 1858-12-01; Ship name: ELLEN STUART; Origin code: B; Arrival year: 1858; Gender: M; Arrival month: DEC; Page: 4; Native place: ENG The ship Ellen Stuart, which departed from Liverpool, docked at Point Henry (Geelong), Victoria, on December 1, 1858. |
| Residence | 1858-59 Victoria | No details |
| Residence | 27 Jan 1866, Cardwell, Queensland | Robert arrived in Cardwell it was 27 January 1866, this is reported in the Queensland Times, Ipswich Herald and General Advertiser in Feb 1866 . “The schooner Lily arrived on the 27th, and left again on the 30th. Messrs. Scott, Blencowe, and Low are passengers by her.” |
| Land Purchase | 22 Mar 1866, Cardwell | 22 March 1865 for £38 (Port Denison Times). The Port Denison Times and Kennedy District Advertiser (Bowen, Qld. : 1864 – 1900) Later records show he had in fact bought lots 1, 5 and 12 as well.. |
| Expeditions | August 1866, Kirrama Range, Queensland | Crossed the Great Diving Range and named Blencowe Falls and Creek from the expedition. Caught Tropical Fever on this trip |
| Sick | Sep1866-Oct 1866 Ipswich General Hospital | |
| Death | 1 Nov 1866, Ipswich General Hospital |
Ancestors
The line of Blencowes for Reverend William Moulton Blencowe stopped when Robert died in 1866 . It was a line of Physicians, Doctors of Divinity, Oxford University Graduates.
Sources
- Daphne Austens Blencowe Database
- Ancestry and Familysearch
- Trove Newspapers archives
- Victoria Government Archives
- Early History of Cardwell
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