Alfred Gibson
Encyclopedia
Alfred Gibson was an Australia
n explorer
who died in an 1874 expedition organised by Ernest Giles
that sought to cross the desert
s of Western Australia
from east to west. The Gibson Desert
, into which he disappeared, was named after him by his fellow explorer Giles.
Giles wrote:
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n explorer
Exploration
Exploration is the act of searching or traveling around a terrain for the purpose of discovery of resources or information. Exploration occurs in all non-sessile animal species, including humans...
who died in an 1874 expedition organised by Ernest Giles
Ernest Giles
William Ernest Powell Giles , best known as Ernest Giles, was an Australian explorer who led three major expeditions in central Australia.- Early life :...
that sought to cross the desert
Desert
A desert is a landscape or region that receives an extremely low amount of precipitation, less than enough to support growth of most plants. Most deserts have an average annual precipitation of less than...
s of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
from east to west. The Gibson Desert
Gibson Desert
The Gibson Desert covers a large dry area in the state of Western Australia and is still largely in an almost "pristine" state. It is about in size, making it the 5th largest desert in Australia, after the Great Sandy, Great Victoria, Tanami and Simpson deserts.-Location and description:The Gibson...
, into which he disappeared, was named after him by his fellow explorer Giles.
Giles wrote:
"Here a short young man accosted me, and asked me if I did not remember him, saying at the same time that he was 'Alf'. I fancied I knew his face, but thought it was at the Peake that I had seen him, but he said "Oh no, don't you remember Alf with Bagot's sheep at the north-west bend of the Murray? My name's Alf Gibson, and I want to go out with you." I said, "Well, can you shoe? Can you ride? Can you starve? Can you go without water? And how would you like to be speared by the blacks outside?" He said he could do everything I had mentioned, and he wasn't afraid of the blacks. He was not a man I would have picked out of a mob, but men were scarce, and as he seemed so anxious to come, and as I wanted somebody, I agreed to take him."