A country’s toponyms has many hidden complexities. For example, some name-forms can deceive theunwary in terms of their origins and meanings. Australia’s toponymy is a good case in point.Many of Australia’s toponyms are transparent as to their etymologies, such as, Port Macquarie (NSW),Sandy Bay (TAS), whilst others are more opaque, Read more…
Beaten by tempest and stormed by drift, Steady I keep my post, And laugh at the southern rollers long, For I’m guard of the Southern Coast. I watched the Dutchmen on their way, In the days of long ago, But they set no foot on my rocky shore, Where the Read more…
Sweers Island is an island in the South Wellesley Islands in the Gulf of Carpentaria, Queensland. The island was given its European name by explorer Matthew Flinders on 16 November 1802 after Salomon Sweers, a council member of the East India Company at Batavia who was one of those who Read more…
While the vase looks more Middle Eastern or Asian it might come from a Dutch ship. It forms part of the Captain Thomson collection at the Cooktown Museum. As indicated in the label below the picture it may have found by Frank Jardine, an early landowner, settler and police commissioner Read more…
When she was built in 1930, she was the largest ship yet built by the Nederlandse Scheepsbouw Maatschappij. She had berths for 770 passengers: 366 in first class, 280 in second, 64 in third and 60 in fourth class. She had berths for 360 crew. She had four decks and Read more…
The 7th Fleet was formed on March 15, 1943 in Brisbane, Australia, during World War II. It served in the South West Pacific Area (SWPA) under the control of General Douglas MacArthur, and the 7th Fleet commander also served as commander of Allied naval forces in the SWPA. This Read more…
After publishing ‘The Lost White Tribes of Australia‘ Part Two, the author Henry van Zanden realised that the Victorian chapters deserved a more thorough investigation and its own book dedicated entirely to the smallpox outbreak in Victoria and NSW. In Victoria, he explored the South-western districts especially Lake Condah and Read more…
Commemorating a Landmark Voyage The De Vlamingh Memorial Sundial stands as a testament to the historical voyage of Dutch explorer Willem de Vlamingh, whose expedition in 1697 culminated in the significant discovery of Western Australia. This interactive memorial not only commemorates de Vlamingh’s arrival at the Swan River but also Read more…
The source of this is: Imaginary Maps! Where people can share maps they can make of alternate history, fantasy, sci-fi or as they state anything really! It is called Counterfactual History. We keep it in as a bit of fun This how somebody imagining the United Kingdom of the Netherlands in Read more…
[North West Cape to Cape Londonderry] Tasman’s Voyage of 1643 Documentary Source other than original Journal Witsen, N 1705Noord en Ooste Tartarye,Amsterdam: Francois Halma, pp.175-6. p.175In latitude 190 35’ and longitude 1340 natives who appeared in great numbers threw stones at the people the Dutch sent ashore in 1643; these Read more…