Description
In 1831, Thomas Scott Townsend joined the Surveyor General’s Department in New South Wales as a draftsman, aged 18. By the end of his career, Townsend had become the greatest of all the surveyors who mapped the wild Australian Alps. He was the first European to identify the source of the Murray River and to traverse the Main Range of the Snowy Mountains, and in 1847 he stood on the summit of Mt Kosciuszko, quite possibly the first colonist to do so.
These and other feats earned him the admiration of his superiors. The country’s second highest mountain was named in his honour. And yet his career was barely noticed by the public during his lifetime. Today, the role he played in the colonisation of south-eastern Australia is largely forgotten.
Townsend of the Ranges reveals a chronicle of compelling human interest, a tale of sacrifice and suffering that deserves to be widely known. But, more than this, Townsend’s career is entwined with the story of how Europeans ‘settled’ the south-east by seizing it from First Nations peoples. This violent history is charted in parallel with Townsend’s story, focusing in particular on the Kulin Nation, the Gunaikurnai of Gippsland and the Ngarigo of Monaro.
Specifications:
Publisher: National Library of Australia Publishing
Year: 2024
Format: Paperback
Pages: 352pp
ISBN: 9781922507693
239 A'Beckett Street Melbourne, Victoria, 3000 
03 9326 9288 
office@historyvictoria.org.au 
Office & Library: Weekdays 9am-5pm
Linda Barraclough –
A must-read for anyone with an interest in the surveying of south-east Australia. Especially Gippsland.
Congratulations Peter Crowley on this work being highly commended in the NSW community and regional history awards, 2024.
Rhett Yeats –
Dear Sir, what a remarkable story about Thomas Scott Townsend. You have perfectly captured the hardships and perseverance of his work and life as an explorer and surveyor in the early to mid 1800’s. I found myself engrossed in the story and followed his journeys on maps to get a better understanding of his remarkable achievements. Thankyou for an inspiring story.
Yours faithfully, Rhett Yeats
Linda B –
Brilliant book on a person and a calling overlooked in Australian history. There are many places where he was significant, but for Gippsland in particular he was our first surveyor.
Peter Crowley leads us through a fascinating process of discovering a man who was just a name when he first discovered him, until in the end he was able too present a compelling narrative of someone who was unbelievedly left out of the Australian Dictionary of Biography.
To see the launch, and hear the author speak:
https://www.facebook.com/National.Library.of.Australia/videos/329868280185564/
That is nearly as good as having the book in your hands.