Vorläufige Skizze von Gosses & Warburtons Reisen durch Westaustralien 1873/4

An overview map of Western Australia showing the progress of exploration to 1874, and specifically highlighting the recent expeditions of William Gosse and Peter Egerton-Warburton. There is also a small inset map of Sydney and Port Jackson.

William Gosse led an expedition from Alice Springs in April 1873 to explore the area west of the Transcontinental Telegraph Line. His expedition was the first non-Aboriginal group to reach Uluru, naming it Ayers Rock. After reaching a point 600 miles west of the Telegraph Line, he was forced to turn back, returning to Charlotte Waters by December 1873.

Peter Egerton-Warburton's expedition across the Great Sandy Desert is one of the great achievements in the exploration of Australia. Departing from Adelaide in September 1872, the expedition of seven men and seventeen camels first travelled north to Alice Springs before heading west across the desert hoping to reach Perth. This map shows the expedition's intended route. Despite suffering extreme hardships and privations, the group narrowly survived the desert crossing, reaching Roebourne on the northwest coast of Australia in January 1874. This was 1500km further north than Perth, their intended destination, but the expedition was unable to continue, so they returned to Adelaide by ship. The expedition was hailed as a success, despite not reaching Perth. Warburton later credited his Indigenous Australian tracker Charley with saving the lives of the expedition members.

The routes and discoveries of more than 30 other explorers are also noted on the map, including Gregory, Sturt, Burke & Wills, and Stuart.

Printed colour. [AUNZ3016]