Captain Collet BarkerPrint Page

The marble plaque commemorates Captain Collet Barker of His Majesty`s 39th Regiment of Foot who was killed by the Aborigines while exploring Lake Alexandrina and the Gulf of St. Vincent.

Collet Barker (31 December 1784 – 30 April 1831) was a military officer and explorer. He explored areas of South Australia, Western Australia and Cobourg Peninsula, Northern Territory. He joined the British Army in 23 January 1806 as an ensign by purchase in the 39th regiment of foot, becoming a lieutenant in 1809 and captain in 1825.

On 13 April 1831 Barker and his party arrived at Cape Jervis on the Isabella. He examined the coast and found that there was no channel. Barker discovered the Onkaparinga River on 15 April. He then explored the ranges inland, north of the present site of Adelaide, and climbed Mount Lofty where he sighted the Port River inlet, Barker Inlet and the future Port Adelaide, his most important discovery.

He then moored Isabella near present Yankalilla Bay and went overland to explore the area around Lake Alexandrina and Encounter Bay. On 29 April the mouth of the Murray was reached. Barker swam across the narrow channel the next morning, went over a sandhill, and was never seen again. A few days later the party learned that Barker had been killed by the local indigenous people who had mistaken him for a whaler or sealer.

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