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Charles Sturt arrived in Australia in charge of a group of convicts in 1827. At that time he had no thoughts of becoming an explorer.
Within a year, however, he undertook his first expedition to discover the fabled Australian inland sea. Tracing the course of the Macquarie River he eventually reached the Darling River which he named after the colonial Governor.
The expedition was cut short by drought. It was so dry the Darling was salty.
In 1829 Sturt explored the Lachlan/Murrumbidgee river system through to the Murray River and all the way downstream to Lake Alexandria in South Australia. Exhausted and running low on provisions, the party then had to row 1,400 kilometres back upstream.
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In 1834 Sturt was awarded 2000 hectares near what is now Canberra. Four years later he drove 330 cattle across to South Australia. He carried out further explorations around Lake Alexandria and became Surveyor General of South Australia.
His final and most significant journey took place in 1844 when he led another expedition looking for an inland sea. His heroic attempts to penetrate the barren interior took him to Sturt's Stony Desert where drought virtually imprisoned him for half a year on Preservation Creek.
Charles Sturt was a kindly, considerate person who enjoyed the respect of his travelling companions and also had good relations with the Aborigines. He was, in short, the embodiment of an English gentleman.
Source: Certificate accompanying the 1994 Masterpieces in Silver - The Explorers - Set.
Charles Sturt is featured on the following Australian coins:
1994 Five Dollars
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Last modified: 05 December, 2007
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