CAPTURED… Based on the True Story of the Crew of­ the Ill-Fated Schooner ‘Nightingale

The story is based on the true exploits of the crew and their Captain of a 29ton schooner Nightingale bound for Bowen on the Queensland coast when their ship was wrecked in a cyclone off the Whitsundays in February 1864.They attempted to take shelter off Blacksmith Island but the wind direction changed and the Nightingale ran ashore on an opposite island. Managing to safely get ashore, the crew salvaged enough stores and material to survive until they had built a crude boat from some of the sawn lumber that their ship was carrying. This small boat enabled the seamen to set sail and head for their original destination of Port Dennison (now Bowen) but they overshot and traveled as far as Magnetic Island near Townsville before they realized their mistake.Attempting to retrace their passage they were thwarted by the prevailing headwinds and were forced to make landfall near Cape Cleveland. From here they trekked south towards Bowen but before long they were captured by a tribe of wild Aborigines, who fortunately for the white men, were not cannibals. Read how the shipwrecked survivors endured their forced enslavement and how they survived their harsh treatment at the hands of the captors until they eventually managed to escape. All except their Captain lived to tell the tale. pp. 111 Signed by author. #1020