Hume & Hovell 1824: Who fired the cannon?

On December 16, 1824 the Hume and Hovell finally reached Corio Bay, close to Point Lillias and ‘Bird Rock’. The next day the party camped adjacent to modern-day Lara beside Kennedy’s Creek (now Hovell’s Creek). Altogether the group of eight explorers stayed three days in the area. Due to a lack of food and their eagerness to bring the news to the authorities in Sydney they headed off on December 19. Not long after decamping the group was startled by a large boom that reverberated across the landscape. It was the sound of cannon fire.

In this video Harry Roberts takes the viewer back to those times, two hundred years ago and poses the question, “Who fired the cannon?”.

Harry Roberts

Harry Roberts is the 2024 President of the Geelong Historical Society. He has worked in the education sector and has an abiding interest in Australian history.

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