Analysis: Who lies in Thunderbolt's grave?
Claims have been made that the body lying in Thunderbolt’s Uralla grave is not that of Fred Ward, but that of his brother William (whom they call Harry), as shown in the Fact Sheet on the Death of Thunderbolt below:[1]
It is important to note the frequent use of the phrase “I believe” (or its variations) in the above – three times in six sentences. The phrase “I believe” is used when a person has no evidence to back up what they are about to say. If they had evidence, they would instead say “the evidence shows”. So let’s see what the evidence actually shows.
The Fact Sheet author states that “by the late 1860s things started to get too hot for Harry in the Maitland area”. In fact, the evidence shows that Fred’s brother William left the Maitland area many years prior to the “late 1860s”, possibly as early as the late 1850s as no further references are found to him in the Maitland district in the aftermath of Fred’s 1856 conviction. In 1863, after Fred escaped from Cockatoo Island, the Police Gazette advised that William was living at the Culgoa River (north-east of Bourke), as shown below:[2]
The Fact Sheet author states that “by the late 1860s things started to get too hot for Harry in the Maitland area”. In fact, the evidence shows that Fred’s brother William left the Maitland area many years prior to the “late 1860s”, possibly as early as the late 1850s as no further references are found to him in the Maitland district in the aftermath of Fred’s 1856 conviction. In 1863, after Fred escaped from Cockatoo Island, the Police Gazette advised that William was living at the Culgoa River (north-east of Bourke), as shown below:[2]
Fred did indeed go to the Culgoa. As such, this confirms the police report that William Ward was living there rather than at Maitland and that William’s residence there was the drawcard. No further primary-source references have been found to William in the aftermath, except for the indication on his mother’s 1874 Death Certificate that he was already dead by that time (that is, the certificate reports that one son was still living – Joshua – and the other four dead: Edward, George, William and Fred).
Claiming that the body buried in the Uralla grave could be that of Fred’s brother William simply because his death certificate has not been found reflects a failure to consider the nature of his known residential area at that time. The Culgoa River was frontier territory, the type of district frequented by escaped convicts like Fred Ward who wanted to hide from the law. If someone died, the locals didn’t hang onto the body until a clergyman came by to bury it or a magistrate popped by to register the death. They dug a hole in the ground and dropped the body in. To register a death, someone had to send the news a very long way to the registry office in Bourke or Walgett or wherever. Who was going to bother? Fred? Just imagine: “Informant: Frederick Ward, bushranger, Culgoa River”. Of course, he wouldn’t register his brother’s death, but he would pass the news on to the people who mattered: his own family.
Civil registration was only in its early days at that time, having commenced in NSW in 1856. Although by law all births, marriages and deaths had to be registered, many weren’t. As a case in point, Mary Ann Bugg had ten known children born after the commencement of civil registration yet the births of only three were registered (see Searching for Mary Ann Bugg’s children). The fact that no further references have been found to William after the 1863 police report strongly suggests that he died somewhere like the Culgoa and that his death was not reported.[3] The failure to find William's death certificate cannot be used as evidence to support a belief that his body lies in Thunderbolt’s grave.
The Fact Sheet author also claims that William was “operating” in the Uralla district – meaning bushranging – and that he was “the Thunderbolt shot at and wounded by the police at Moonbi in early 1869”. Firstly, if William was the bushranging type, he probably would have joined Fred’s first gang in 1865 which began operations in the Culgoa River vicinity. Since William didn’t join Fred’s gang, he was either not the bushranging type or he was dead by that time. Secondly, where is the evidence that a bushranger named Thunderbolt was wounded by the police at Moonbi early in 1869? Neither police reports nor newspaper reports refer to such an event – and a Thunderbolt wounding would have been shouted from the rooftops in triumph if it had indeed happened.
But there’s more.
The Fact Sheet author says:
Claiming that the body buried in the Uralla grave could be that of Fred’s brother William simply because his death certificate has not been found reflects a failure to consider the nature of his known residential area at that time. The Culgoa River was frontier territory, the type of district frequented by escaped convicts like Fred Ward who wanted to hide from the law. If someone died, the locals didn’t hang onto the body until a clergyman came by to bury it or a magistrate popped by to register the death. They dug a hole in the ground and dropped the body in. To register a death, someone had to send the news a very long way to the registry office in Bourke or Walgett or wherever. Who was going to bother? Fred? Just imagine: “Informant: Frederick Ward, bushranger, Culgoa River”. Of course, he wouldn’t register his brother’s death, but he would pass the news on to the people who mattered: his own family.
Civil registration was only in its early days at that time, having commenced in NSW in 1856. Although by law all births, marriages and deaths had to be registered, many weren’t. As a case in point, Mary Ann Bugg had ten known children born after the commencement of civil registration yet the births of only three were registered (see Searching for Mary Ann Bugg’s children). The fact that no further references have been found to William after the 1863 police report strongly suggests that he died somewhere like the Culgoa and that his death was not reported.[3] The failure to find William's death certificate cannot be used as evidence to support a belief that his body lies in Thunderbolt’s grave.
The Fact Sheet author also claims that William was “operating” in the Uralla district – meaning bushranging – and that he was “the Thunderbolt shot at and wounded by the police at Moonbi in early 1869”. Firstly, if William was the bushranging type, he probably would have joined Fred’s first gang in 1865 which began operations in the Culgoa River vicinity. Since William didn’t join Fred’s gang, he was either not the bushranging type or he was dead by that time. Secondly, where is the evidence that a bushranger named Thunderbolt was wounded by the police at Moonbi early in 1869? Neither police reports nor newspaper reports refer to such an event – and a Thunderbolt wounding would have been shouted from the rooftops in triumph if it had indeed happened.
But there’s more.
The Fact Sheet author says:
What woman? What journalist? No references to this woman or this journalist or the journalist's alleged report are found in primary-source records.
Clearly, there is no evidence to support the contention that the body of William Ward (or his alter ego,"Harry") inhabits Thunderbolt's grave. Only the remains of Frederick Ward lie there – Captain Thunderbolt himself.
Or do they? Some claim that Fred was buried elsewhere in Uralla cemetery – perhaps to ensure that those wanting relics could not "resurrect" him.
Clearly, there is no evidence to support the contention that the body of William Ward (or his alter ego,"Harry") inhabits Thunderbolt's grave. Only the remains of Frederick Ward lie there – Captain Thunderbolt himself.
Or do they? Some claim that Fred was buried elsewhere in Uralla cemetery – perhaps to ensure that those wanting relics could not "resurrect" him.
Sources:
[1] Fact Sheet on the Death of Thunderbolt by Barry Sinclair [http://users.tpg.com.au/users/barrymor/Family%20Facts%20on%20the%20Death%20of%20Thunderbolt.html]
[2] NSW Police Gazette 1863 p.301
[3] See Who were Frederick Ward's parents?
[1] Fact Sheet on the Death of Thunderbolt by Barry Sinclair [http://users.tpg.com.au/users/barrymor/Family%20Facts%20on%20the%20Death%20of%20Thunderbolt.html]
[2] NSW Police Gazette 1863 p.301
[3] See Who were Frederick Ward's parents?