Henry Maxwell Lefroy (August 1818 – 18 July 1879) was a prominent explorer of the

Mid West The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...

and Goldfields-Esperance regions of

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

. He was the son of Rev. John Henry George Lefroy, the

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of Compton and Ashe, who died when his son was five, leaving his widow and nine other children. He had studied at

Guildford Grammar School Guildford Grammar School, informally known as Guildford Grammar, Guildford or GGS, is an independent Anglican coeducational primary and secondary day and boarding school, located in Guildford, a suburb of Perth, Western Australia. Initial ...

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

, where he became acquainted with the

Stirling Stirling (; sco, Stirlin; gd, Sruighlea ) is a city in central Scotland, northeast of Glasgow and north-west of Edinburgh. The market town, surrounded by rich farmland, grew up connecting the royal citadel, the medieval old town with its me ...

family and first developed an interest in the

Swan River Colony The Swan River Colony, also known as the Swan River Settlement, or just Swan River, was a British colony established in 1829 on the Swan River, in Western Australia. This initial settlement place on the Swan River was soon named Perth, and it ...

in Western Australia. He later studied at

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

and had many conversations with the son of Captain Yates, who furthered his interest in the colony. Lefroy arrived in the colony in 1841 and took up land in

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. He left York in 1843 with Henry Landor on an expedition, accompanied by 10 year old aboriginal boy, Cowits or Kowitch to translate. They crossed the

Hotham River The Hotham River is one of the major tributaries of the Murray River in Western Australia. It is about long with its upper reaches being the Hotham River North, which begins in the Dutarning Range and joins the Hotham at its crossing of the Gr ...

and went on to discover and name Kowitch Pool and the Lefroy River, and then returned after a fortnight. He returned to England to serve in the

Royal Navy The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...

and returned to Western Australia as the Superintendent of

Convicts A convict is "a person found guilty of a crime and sentenced by a court" or "a person serving a sentence in prison". Convicts are often also known as "prisoners" or "inmates" or by the slang term "con", while a common label for former convict ...

in 1854. In 1860 he followed the Williams River eastward and explored the

Darling Scarp The Darling Scarp, also referred to as the Darling Range or Darling Ranges, is a low escarpment running north–south to the east of the Swan Coastal Plain and Perth, Western Australia. The escarpment extends generally north of Bindoon, to th ...

. Lefroy and Landor completed another expedition to the Goldfields in 1863, where the party passed through areas such as

Bruce Rock Bruce Rock is a town in the eastern Wheatbelt region of Western Australia, approximately east of Perth and southwest of Merredin. It is the main town in the Shire of Bruce Rock. History Originally known as Nunagin or Noonegin, the name of ...

, Dumbleyung and Coolgardie. They trekked for a total of 85 days, including four days with no water, before returning to York.

Lake Lefroy Lake Lefroy is a large ephemeral salt lake in the Goldfields-Esperance region of Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excludin ...

was named by the explorer

Charles Cooke Hunt Charles Cooke Hunt (1833 – 1 March 1868, Geraldton) was an English explorer who led four expeditions into the interior of Western Australia between 1864 and 1866. Hunt was born in Sussex to John Hunt and Mary Ann (''née'' Cooke) and baptised ...

in 1864 after Lefroy, who would have seen the lake during his visit. Lefroy retired from his position as Superintendent of Convicts in 1875, and died 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 ...

on 18 July 1879 of

pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...

. He was buried at

Karrakatta Cemetery Karrakatta Cemetery is a metropolitan cemetery in the suburb of Karrakatta in Perth, Western Australia. Karrakatta Cemetery first opened for burials in 1899, the first being that of wheelwright Robert Creighton. Managed by the Metropolitan Ce ...

References

External links

* ebooks b
Henry Maxwell Lefroy
a
Project Gutenberg Australia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lefroy, Henry 1818 births Australian pastoralists Burials at Karrakatta Cemetery Explorers of Western Australia 1879 deaths Settlers of Western Australia 19th-century Australian businesspeople Mayors of Fremantle