Frank Gardiner
| Frank Gardiner | |
|---|---|
| Alias(es) | The Darkie |
| Charge(s) | robbery |
| Conviction(s) | robbery |
| Occupation | Saloon owner |
| Children | 2 sons |
Frank Gardiner (born c. 1829, Ross-shire Scotland; died California, USA) was a noted Australian bushranger of the 19th century. He was born in Scotland about 1827 and migrated from to Australia as a child with his parents in 1834,.[1][2] His real name was Francis Christie, though he often used one of several other aliases including Gardiner, Clarke or Christie. He supposedly took the name Gardiner after a man who lived for some years with his family and who had taught him how to ride and break in horses. Although almost all legend states that his real name is Francis Christie, he signed his name 'Frank Gardiner'. He used the surname Gardiner while in America and he remains one of the more enigmatic Australian bushrangers.
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[edit] Appearance
Gardiner was 5ft 9 inches tall with an athletic build, with his brown wavy hair and hazel eyes, he was attractive with a face of a corsair and a smooth voice. [3]
[edit] Early career
In 1850 Gardiner moved to Victoria and there with another man stole 24 horses from a settler in the Loddon Valley. They planned to sell the horses in Portland. Caught resting near Mt Sturgeon by the horses real owner , Gardiner was tried at Geelong in October 1850 and sentenced to five years hard labour.[4]
On 20 March 1851 Gardiner was part of a chain gang working outside Pentridge Prison when they rushed the guards and escaped. Most of the convicts were rounded up within days but Gardiner returned to New South Wales. Teaming up with a youth names Prior, Gardiner resumed his horse stealing career. In February of 1854 Gardiner, (calling himself Clarke) and Prior were caught trying to sell stolen horses at Yass. This time he was sentenced to fourteen years ( seven years for each charge). While imprisoned he met John Peisley.
Granted a ticket of leave in 1860 on the condition of staying in the Carcoar district he soon joined Peisley who was roaming as a lone highwayman. his ticket of leave was revoked when a warrant for his arrest for cattle stealing was issued. Briefly captured after a gunfight with two troopers Gardiner was rescued by Peisley and John Gilbert who bailed the police up on their return to town.
[edit] Lachlan Gold Escort robbery
In June 1862 he bailed up the Lachlan Gold Escort near Eugowra with a gang including Ben Hall, Dan Charters and Johnny Gilbert. This hold up is considered to be one of the largest ever gold robberies in Australian history. The total value of the 2,700 ounces of gold and bank-notes taken was estimated at £14,000 (approximately A$12.5 million in 2011 terms). Much of the gold was recovered by mounted police after they surprised the gang on Wheoga Hill near Forbes. What happened to the remaining gold is still the subject of much speculation and rumour. Treasure hunters still visit the area and it is even rumoured that two Americans who were thought to be Gardiner's sons visited the Wheogo Station near the Weddins in 1911 claming to be miners.[citation needed]
[edit] Capture and exile
In 1863-4 Gardiner was living with Kitty Brown at Apis Creek near Rockhampton, Queensland, where he was running a general store. [5] He was recognised and reported to the police in Sydney. Gardiner was apprehended in controversial circumstances by NSW police operating outside their jurisdiction. One of the NSW policemen used Gardiner's own horse 'Darkie' during the capture. He was taken back to Sydney, and sentenced to 32 years hard labour.
Gardiner served only 10 years of his sentence after successful appeals by his two sisters. He was granted an early release, conditional on his leaving the country. In late 1874 Gardiner arrived in California having travelled via Hong Kong. He is just one of many Australians exiled from this country during the bushranging era.
Gardiner owned the Twilight Star Saloon on Kearny Street in the "Barbary Coast" area of San Francisco. There are many rumours about his life there, including a claim that he married a rich American widow and had two sons. None have been proven. The circumstances of his death are not known with any degree of certainty, due in large part by the destruction caused during the 1906 San Francisco earthquake. There are various reports of his death ranging from the early 1880s to 1904 as the Sydney Morning Herald reported that year.[2] Again, there is no hard evidence to support any particular date.
[edit] Notes
- ^ Macklin 2005
- ^ a b Morrison 2003
- ^ http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/72004391?searchTerm=frank gardiner&searchLimits=
- ^ http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/72004391?searchTerm=frank gardiner&searchLimits=
- ^ http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/article/30938549?searchTerm=frank gardiner&searchLimits=
[edit] see also
Frank Gardiner's - Ben Hall's gang
[edit] References
- Morrison, Alec (2003). Frank Gardiner: Bushranger to Businessman 1830-1904. John Wiley & Sons Australia Ltd. ISBN 1-74031-081-0. OCLC 55534379.
- Macklin, Robert (2005). Fire in the Blood. Allen & Unwin. ISBN 1-74114-291-1. OCLC 68263460 65526832 68263460.
- White, Charles. Australian Bushranging, Gardiner "King of the Road.
- Boxall, G. E. (1974). The Story of the Australian Bushrangers. London: Swan Sonnenschein & Co.. ISBN 0140700390. OCLC 27497139 219902294 27497139.
- Serle, Percival (1949). "Gardiner, Frank". Dictionary of Australian Biography. Sydney: Angus and Robertson. http://gutenberg.net.au/dictbiog/0-dict-biogG.html#gardiner1.
[edit] External links
- Frank Gardiner on the National Museum of Australia website
- "LATTER-DAY BUSHRANGERS.". Bathurst Free Press and Mining Journal (NSW : 1851 - 1904) (NSW: National Library of Australia): p. 4. 26 January 1892. http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article62725649. Retrieved 24 February 2012., Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, Part 6,
