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Captain Charles Sturt & Captain Collet BarkerPrint Page 
The monument commemorates explorers Captain Charles Sturt and Captain Collet Barker near the site where Sturt first saw the waters of Encounter Bay. Captain Sturt and Captain Barker both served in the 39th Regiment.
In March 1831 on a voyage to Sydney, Barker was asked to determine the outlet of the River Murray. He examined the eastern shore of Gulf St Vincent from Cape Jervis northward, climbed Mount Lofty, found Adelaide`s future port and named the near-by Sturt River. From Yankalilla Bay he went overland with a party to Encounter Bay where alone he swam the Murray mouth and was speared to death by Aboriginals on 30 April 1831.
There was a record number of people on Hindmarsh Island yesterday to witness the unveiling of the memorial to Captain Charles Sturt and Captain Collet Barker. This memorial completes the chain along the River Murray. It is a massive monument 25 feet high and ten feet square at the base. It is built of granite, and commands a view of the lakes, the Goolwa channel, the Murray mouth, and the sea. The site marks the spot where Captain Sturt first saw the southern ocean, and the mouth of the Murray.
The monument was intended to perpetuate the memory not only of Captain Sturt, but of his brother officer of the 39th Regiment, now the "Dorsetshire Regiment," Captain Collet Barker. Their knowledge of Captain Barker they owed to Captain Sturt alone. The Lieutenant Governor (Sir George Murray), in unveiling the memorial, traced the history of the voyage of Captain Sturt. Sir George reviewed Captain Barker's explorations in South Australia and referred to his tragic death when killed by the natives after having swum across the mouth of the River Murray.
The Advertiser (Adelaide), 20 January 1930.
Location
| Address: | Randell & Monument Roads, Hindmarsh Island, 5214 |
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| State: | SA |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -35.510715 Long: 138.829353 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
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| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Exploration |
| Link: | http://adbonline.anu.edu.au/adbonli… |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Sunday 19th January, 1930 |
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In memory of Charles Sturt and Collet Barker,
Captains of the 39th Regiment, brother Officers, fellow explorers and friends.
Hereabouts, in February 1830, Sturt first saw the waters of Encounter Bay, thus crowning his heroic voyage of discovery down the River Murray.
At the Murray mouth in April 1831, Barker perished, having completed Sturt`s task of exploration, during which he discovered the Port Adelaide inlet and first ascended Mount Lofty,
Erected 1930
