Dedicated to the history of Allan Cunningham Botanist Explorer 1791 – 1839
This book tells the story of George Suttor, and his wife Sarah, and their journey to Australia bringing plants to New South Wales in 1800 for Sir Joseph Banks. It follows their life in the new colony: initially in Sydney, involvement in the rum rebellion, crossing the Blue Mountains and settling in Bathurst, and their later journey around Europe in 1839 to study methods of grape growing and wine making.…
27th June 1839 On this day, 27th June 1839, Allan Cunningham died. His life had been cut short. He was only 48. In the words of his friend Robert Heward, it was the “termination of…
On this day, 13th October 1838, Allan Cunningham returned to Port Jackson from the Bay of Islands New Zealand, he was very ill.…
On this day, 10th June 1838, while Allan Cunningham was in New Zealand there was a massacre of aboriginals at Myall Creek near Bingara. 27 to 30 Indigenous Australians died.…
On this day, 15th April 1838, Allan Cunningham departed from Port Jackson and a sailed to New Zealand aboard the French corvette L’Heroine…
Sometime in December 1837 Allan Cunningham resigned from his position as Colonial Botanist of New South Wales.…
On this day, 1st March 1837, Allan Cunningham took up his position as Colonial Botanist in New South Wales.…
On this day, 12th February 1837, Allan Cunningham arrived in Port Jackson aboard the “Norfolk” to take up his post as Colonial Botanist. …
On this day, 30th October 1836, Allan Cunningham departed England on the “Norfolk”…
While Allan Cunningham is in England, Charles Darwin ends his visit to Sydney and departs aboard “The Beagle” 30th January 1836.…
While Allan Cunningham is in England, Charles Darwin arrived in Sydney aboard “The Beagle” on 12th January 1836
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Sometime in April 1835 Allan Cunningham’s brother Richard disappeared in the Australian bush…
On this day, 16th October 1834, Allan Cunningham was living at Strand on the Green when the Palace of Westminster burned.…
On this day, while Allan Cunningham was in England, 31st August 1833, a ship, Amphitrite, carrying convicts sank. Allan Cunningham would have read the news from the comfort of his home in Strand-on-the-Green or when he visited his favourite coffee house in London.…
On this day, 5th January 1833, Richard Cunningham, Allan’s brother, arrived in Sydney on the convict ship Mary III, to take up his post as the Colonial Botanist.…
Australia’s first professional theatrical performance is staged at the Theatre Royal, Sydney, organised by Jewish entrepreneur Barnett Levey.…
On this day in London, 22nd June 1832, Allan Cunningham gave some particulars of Moreton Bay to a British Select Committee on Secondary Punishments…
On this day, 30th March 1832, James Holman (known as the blind traveller) departed Sydney on the Strathfieldsaye…
Around this date, 15th March 1832, the British Parliament passed the “Reform Act of 1832” into law, bringing patronage close to an end.…
On this day, 22nd December 1831, Charles Fraser, 1788 – 1831, ((Learn more about Charles Falser, Colonial Botanist of New South Wales at Wikipedia, plus The Australian Dictionary of Biography has an interesting entry about Mr Fraser)) the Colonial Botanist, working in Port Jackson, died. Charles was a founder of the Botanic Gardens in Sydney and took part in many exploratory expeditions including several in the company of Allan Cunningham and contributed an enormous amount of knowledge to the science of botany. The death of this man would result in Allan’s brother Richard coming to Australia to take up the role of Colonial Botanist and only a few years later, after Richard’s unfortunate violent death in 1835, Allan would return to Australia in 1837 to become the Colonial Botanist.…