Frederick Kennedy Panter (1836 – 13 November 1864) was a police officer,

pastoralist Pastoralist may refer to: * Pastoralism, raising livestock on natural pastures * Pastoral farming, settled farmers who grow crops to feed their livestock * People who keep or raise sheep, sheep farming Sheep farming or sheep husbandry is the r ...

and explorer in

colonial Colonial or The Colonial may refer to: * Colonial, of, relating to, or characteristic of a colony or colony (biology) Architecture * American colonial architecture * French Colonial * Spanish Colonial architecture Automobiles * Colonial (1920 a ...

Western Australia. While exploring in the Kimberley region of Western Australia in 1864, he was killed by Aboriginal Australians.

Biography

Born in 1836, Frederick Panter was a relative of Governor of Western Australia Sir Arthur Kennedy. Little is known of his early life, except that he was a police

constable A constable is a person holding a particular office, most commonly in criminal law enforcement. The office of constable can vary significantly in different jurisdictions. A constable is commonly the rank of an officer within the police. Other peop ...

in Queensland, came to Western Australia, and by 1861 was Perth's

Inspector of Police Inspector, also police inspector or inspector of police, is a police rank. The rank or position varies in seniority depending on the organization that uses it. Australia In Australian police forces, the rank of inspector is generally the ne ...

. In 1864, Panter and the naturalist Dr James Martin led an official expedition to investigate claims made by a convict, Henry Wildman, who reported finding gold near Camden Harbour (close to the northern tip of the

Kimberley Kimberly or Kimberley may refer to: Places and historical events Australia * Kimberley (Western Australia) ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Kimberley * Kimberley Warm Springs, Tasmania * Kimberley, Tasmania a small town * County of Kimberley, a ...

region), eight years earlier. On arrival in the area, Wildman became sullen and uncooperative, and tried to escape. While no gold was found, the expedition reinforced Martin and Kenneth Brown's previous (1863) discovery of pastoral land around both Camden Harbour and Roebuck Bay. A public company, the

Roebuck Bay Company Roebuck may refer to: Animals *Roe buck or roebuck, a male roe deer People * Alvah Curtis Roebuck (1864–1948), American businessman, co-founder of Sears, Roebuck and Company * Daniel Roebuck (born 1963), American television film actor, writer a ...

(RBC), had already been formed to establish a chain of sheep stations in the area, and Panter was attached to an RBC advance party that sailed to

Cape Villaret A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck. History Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. The ...

, later in 1864, to set up a station. The following month, Panter, along with James Harding and William Goldwyer, set out from the base camp on an expedition to explore the area to the south, around La Grange Bay. The expedition did not return, and a few months later, a special search party under Maitland Brown was sent from Perth to find them. Brown's party eventually found the three men dead, having been clubbed and speared to death, following a series of clashes with Karajarri people. Brown and his expedition also killed a number of Karajarri people in the area. The bodies of Panter, Harding and Goldwyer were returned to Perth, where thousands of spectators attended their public

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect th ...

. In February 1913, a monument to Brown and the three murdered men, the Explorers' Monument, was unveiled in

Fremantle Fremantle () () is a port city in Western Australia, located at the mouth of the Swan River in the metropolitan area of Perth, the state capital. Fremantle Harbour serves as the port of Perth. The Western Australian vernacular diminutive for ...

. At the time of Panter's death, he was engaged to marry Georgiana, daughter of John and Georgiana Molloy.

Notes

General references

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Panter, Frederick Kennedy 1836 births 19th-century Australian people 19th-century explorers Australian murder victims Australian police officers Explorers of Western Australia Male murder victims People murdered in Western Australia Settlers of Western Australia 1864 deaths 1864 murders in Australia