David Brouwer draws together the main incidents of Thunderbolt’s career; casting a critical light on some of the more improbable stories and bringing a new perspective to the many accounts of this icon of the Australian bush.
Stories of the famous bushranger Fred Ward continue to grow some 150 years after he took the alias ‘Captain Thunderbolt’. The legend lives on with repetition. His exploits are most recently being recorded on the internet in the form of primary school children’s projects, secondary and university research projects, family histories and web sites promoting local tourist sites and attractions. Dip into the world-wide web and Thunderbolt stories crop up constantly, and in the most unlikely places.
n this short account, we trace the history of Fred Ward, the making of the legend of Thunderbolt, and his associations with Tocal and the wider Hunter district in which many of his dramatic exploits took place. In sketching these details we have drawn on a wide range of publications on bushrangers, Thunderbolt histories and newspaper accounts. We’ve highlighted some contradictions and tried to emphasise the most probable history rather than dwell on the more romantic interpretations. But in the end, it is the imaginative blend of both that has made the legend of Thunderbolt.
Written by: David Brouwer
Agdex 810
ISBN for this book: 0 7313 0558 2
First published 2002