Description: An eccentric account of shipwreck on the Crozet Islands, subsequent rescue and deliverance to Van Diemen's Land. Goodridge's record of his two-year stay on one of the Crozet Islands after being shipwrecked was written as a new Robinson Crusoe - the result is reminiscent of Defoe's classic but has the advantage of telling a true story down to mundane detail: "Having no tobacco, we smoaked (sic) the dried grass that grew on the island, and although it was but a poor substitute, we were obliged to be satisfied with it." The frontispiece portrait of Goodridge in his seal skin costume is indeed a bizarre confection. The survivors lived on sea-elephant seals, penguins and other sea birds and were in the process of building a boat to escape when they were rescued by an American ship. They immediately fell out with the captain and were left on St. Paul Island for three months before being picked up and taken to Tasmania. Goodridge's eight years there furnished him with material to write his Statistical View of Van Diemen's Land as well as the Addenda to this volume which details climate, soil types, river systems, disease, the Aboriginal people, transportation and the penal system (with which he was familiar having been falsely imprisoned for four days in Hobart).

Collection: DOCUMENTARY HERITAGEDescription: An eccentric account of shipwreck on the Crozet Islands, subsequent rescue and deliverance to Van Diemen's Land. Goodridge's record of his two-year stay on one of the Crozet…

Description: An eccentric account of shipwreck on the Crozet Islands, subsequent rescue and deliverance to Van Diemen's Land. Goodridge's record of his two-year stay on one of the Crozet Islands after being shipwrecked was written as a new Robinson Crusoe - the result is reminiscent of Defoe's classic but has the advantage of telling a true story down to mundane detail: "Having no tobacco, we smoaked (sic) the dried grass that grew on the island, and although it was but a poor substitute, we were obliged to be satisfied with it." The frontispiece portrait of Goodridge in his seal skin costume is indeed a bizarre confection. The survivors lived on sea-elephant seals, penguins and other sea birds and were in the process of building a boat to escape when they were rescued by an American ship. They immediately fell out with the captain and were left on St. Paul Island for three months before being picked up and taken to Tasmania. Goodridge's eight years there furnished him with material to write his Statistical View of Van Diemen's Land as well as the Addenda to this volume which details climate, soil types, river systems, disease, the Aboriginal people, transportation and the penal system (with which he was familiar having been falsely imprisoned for four days in Hobart).

Collection: DOCUMENTARY HERITAGEDescription: An eccentric account of shipwreck on the Crozet Islands, subsequent rescue and deliverance to Van Diemen's Land. Goodridge's record of his two-year stay on one of the Crozet…

Collection: DOCUMENTARY HERITAGE

Description: "Having transferred to the Australian navy before the Second World War, Claude was ready to do his bit against the might of the Japanese army with the considerable quantities of explosives he had at his disposal. At the end of the war, there was at last time to enjoy all the riches that the continent had to offer. In his 80s, realising he had enjoyed a life well lived, Claude began working on his memoirs with the help of his daughters, and in The Last of the Last he provides a riveting account of his lifetime, one that vividly mirrors how the last century unfolded.

Collection: DOCUMENTARY HERITAGEDescription: "Having transferred to the Australian navy before the Second World War, Claude was ready to do his bit against the might of the Japanese army with the considerable quantities…

Collection: DOCUMENTARY HERITAGE