Massacre at Quamby Bluff (3)

Date: 5 Jul 1827
Place: Quamby Bluff (3)
Event type: massacre
Direct violence: Yes
On 3 July 1827 the Pallittorre killed two shepherds assigned to settlers William Widowson and Abraham Walker at Dairy Plains, sixty kilometers west of Launceston. Corporals John Shiners and James Lingan, field constable Thomas Williams and stockmen Thomas Baker, James Cubit, Henry Smith and William White, set off in reprisal. Three years later, stock-keeper George Johnson told government agent GA Robinson that on this occasion 'the soldiers killed nine or ten' Pallittore. (Plomley, 1966, p 219 ; 2008, p 254 ) This is the third reprisal massacre carried out by Shiners and his party in an 18 day killing spree in which at least 78 Pallittore were killed and is known as the Quamby Bluff killings.
Notes:
CorroborationRating: **
LanguageGroup: Pallittore
Victims: Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander People
VictimsDead: 9

People involved

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Sources

  • Colonial Times, 6 July 1827; Plomley, 1966, p 219; 2008, p 254.

Event mentions

  • Massacre at Quamby Bluff (3)
    5 Jul 1827 — Quamby Bluff (3) — massacre
    On 3 July 1827 the Pallittorre killed two shepherds assigned to settlers William Widowson and Abraham Walker at Dairy Plains, sixty kilometers west of Launceston. Corporals John Shiners and James Lingan, field constable Thomas Williams and stockmen Thomas Baker, James Cubit, Henry Smith and William White, set off in reprisal. Three years later, stock-keeper George Johnson told government agent GA Robinson that on this occasion 'the soldiers killed nine or ten' Pallittore. (Plomley, 1966, p 219 ; 2008, p 254 ) This is the third reprisal massacre carried out by Shiners and his party in an 18 day killing spree in which at least 78 Pallittore were killed and is known as the Quamby Bluff killings.
    Source: Colonial Times, 6 July 1827; Plomley, 1966, p 219; 2008, p 254.