- Joined
- Feb 25, 2013
- Messages
- 272
- Reaction score
- 364
Stannards grave - finally found after 80 years
John Stannard was 19 years old when he drowned in the Jane River in Tasmanias ruggered wilderness whilst working for a logging company in 1901.He got trapped under a log and perished in the water, leaving his co-workers no other option that to bury him on the banks of the river. It would have been a 40 mile hike through dense bush land and forrest to take him back to town for a proper burial.
His grave was marked with 2 crosscut saws upright over the grave, and 2 Huon pines planted either side of it. A makeshift headstone was also placed with a wooden cross to mark where he was buried.
Stannards colleagues left the area when they had completed the logging work they were undertaking. It is believed they were amateur gold prospectors in the downtime they had on the river.
The last known visit to the grave was in 1938 when a photograph was taken with a man standing next to the grave (photo attached).
The grave was then lost for over 80 years. Many attempted to find it but failed.
Recently, a few prospectors from Tasmania who both have YouTube channels (tassieboys prospecting and Rob Parsons) set off to find the grave.
In October they spent many days battling the ruggered terrain but failed to locate it. Last month they set off once again in a last attempt to locate Stannards grave.
After 3 days of slogging it out in ridiculous overgrown harsh forest, and being faced with numerous setbacks - they finally found Stannards grave.
Their journeys were filed with their go pros, and both have recently been uploaded to YouTube. I have attached both links to their videos which can be seen at the bottom of this post.
If you enjoy the discovery of lost graves and Australian history, the videos are well worth watching!
erfect:
