Angus McMillan
| Angus McMillan | |
|---|---|
Portrait of McMillan
|
|
| Born |
14 August 1810 Glen Brittle, Scotland |
| Died | 18 May 1865 (aged 54) Iguana Creek, near Bairnsdale, Victoria |
| Resting place | Sale, Victoria |
| Nationality | Scottish |
| Occupation | Explorer, pastoralist |
| Known for | European discovery of Gippsland |
| Spouse(s) | Christina MacDougald |
| Children | Two sons |
Angus McMillan (14 August 1810 – 18 May 1865) was an explorer and pioneer pastoralist in Gippsland, Victoria, Australia. Arriving in Australia in 1838, he rose swiftly in colonial society. In retribution for the murder of a fellow pastoralist and for the killing of livestock, he led many of the Gippsland massacres of 1840-1850, which killed or drove away the region's indigenous population. The Victorian Federal electorate McMillan is named for him.
Angus McMillan was born in Glen Brittle, Isle of Skye, Scotland, the fourth son of Ewan McMillan. After an early life of hardship and deprivation he migrated to Australia in 1838. Under the initial employ of Captain Lachlan Macalister he gained experience of Australian pastoralism on the Monaro, New South Wales before moving to manage the Currawang station near Delegate.
By the late 1830s, wealthy landholders in New South Wales had become interested in the Gippsland region of Victoria and funded exploration of the region. Macalister knew the early settlers in the high country of Gippsland around Benambra and Omeo as they too were from the Monaro. He put forward McMillan as a candidate to further explore the plains of Gippsland proper nearer to the coast. A second interest sent Polish scientist-explorer, Count Paul Strzelecki to also explore Gippsland.
On 28 May 1839 McMillan travelled south on his first exploration of the Gippsland plains, accompanied by Jimmy Gabber, an elder of the Monaro people. The expedition was unsuccessful; in a letter to colonial administrator Charles La Trobe, McMillan reported that six days after leaving Currawong, Gabber declined to go further for fear of encountering the Kurnai people, Gippsland's indigenous inhabitants. McMillan refused to turn back, whereupon Gabber waited for a quiet moment and attempted to kill McMillan with a club. Gabber retreated when McMillan raised his pistol, but still refused to go on.
...
Wikipedia