Talk:Captain Thunderbolt

Comment
I was editing this page when someone added a copyright violation. The person who added the content was my father Barry Sinclair who is unfamiliar with the protocols for Wikipedia. The content is his own material as he will no doubt advise. I am sure he will work out the rules soon enough and do all the correct things. --Peacenik 12:15, 30 Sep 2004 (UTC)

Hi Peacenik. Your father will need to release this material under the GNU FDL before it can be posted on Wikipedia. He can make a statement on this talk page to that effect (but bear in mind No original research), but he should be aware that the text will be subject to editing by all and sundry. If he is happy to see this happen to what is obviously a labour of love, then encourage him to register and carry on adding to Wikipedia. Cheers. Noisy | Talk 12:42, 30 Sep 2004 (UTC)

Hi my name is Barry Sinclair, I am the copyright holder of all the material I am about to enter & have my own web page on the topic of Captain Thunderbolt, an Australian Bushranger from NSW, Australia at URL http://www4.tpg.com.au/users/barrymor/thunderbolt.html. --12.35, 2 October, 2004 (UTC)

This page appears to be rich in opinion and editorial comment, and contains a substantial amount of original research. I have marked it TotallyDisputed, but I confess I am not an expert on Thunderbolt and am unlikely to rectify the page myself. Snottygobble 02:14, 17 Dec 2004 (UTC)


 * Every now and again I come back to it and do a bit more wikifying and NPOVing, so I'd welcome you spending just a few minutes working on it to make it more wiki-like. Cheers.  Noisy | Talk 10:14, Dec 17, 2004 (UTC)

Title of this page
I think the name of this page should be changed to Captain Thunderbolt. I added a divert from Captain Thunderbolt to this but am not sure of the protocol to get it changed.--Peacenik 08:38, 2 Jan 2005 (UTC)


 * Well normally it would be quite easy, and you would just do a 'Move this page'. However, because the redirect has been edited, you will not be able to do that: you can only move a page onto its redirect if the redirect page is unedited.  This is an example where you should have used the 'Show preview' to check that your redirect worked before saving it.  What you have to do now is list the Captain Thunderbolt page on Redirects for deletion; wait for an admin to delete it; and then get on and do the page move.  Noisy | Talk 10:00, Jan 2, 2005 (UTC)

Factual errors e.g. the non-existant cathedral
I'm a decendent of John Blanch, the proprietor of Blanch's Inn.

Where is this "St Paul's Cathedral" in Armidale where Fred Ward's brother is supposed to have been married ? St Peter's Cathedral was not built until 1878 St Mary and St Joseph's Cathedral was not built until the beginning of the 20th century.
 * I notice that there is a St Paul's Presbyterian Church, but that was built in 1881. Perhaps there was an earlier church of the same name? --Peacenik 00:39, 18 October 2005 (UTC)

Thank you for the correction Barry Sinclair, I have made the correction 18th Oct 2005

Rewrite
I rewrote the article bringing it into line with other convict Bio`s and provide NPOV
 * Excellent article. Well done Ghostieguide. Drew (Snottygobble | Talk) 11:07, 11 January 2006 (UTC)

The Ghost Who Walks
I wonder if anyone has ever noticed that Thunderbolt conforms to a mythic type, that of the Undying King? Think of King Arthur, Barbarossa, et al - rather than dying, the Undying King is spirited away (usually by supernatural helpers) to a land where he awaits the call to return and save his people. In more modern times the parallels are Elvis (coming soon to a supermarket near you), all those American POWs still living in the jungles of Laos (there's currently a website asking for volunteers to go rescue them), even Harold Holt (on his Russian submarine - which puts the Russians into the strange position of being the equivalent of the Lady of the Lake). If Fred had lived a few hundred years previous, he too could have become a demi-god. PiCo 09:32, 24 March 2006 (UTC)

Shark Infested?
Surely it's pushing it a bit far to suggest that Sydney Harbour is shark infested in early September? Sure, it sounds good and makes the story more exciting but really you only get sharks inside the harbour in the summer months and even then the term "shark infested" is really rather sensationalist. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 165.12.252.12 (talk) 03:26, 22 October 2008 (UTC)

Novel inspired by Captain Thunderbolt
I once read or heard that Randolph Stow's novel, Midnite: The Story of a Wild Colonial Boy, was based on the legend of Captain Thunderbolt. I am not sure how to verify this claim, or if it can be added to the Wikipedia page on Captain Thunderbolt. Any ideas that might help? Bluebellrock (talk) 07:08, 13 May 2009 (UTC)

Additions to Biography by 220.245.88.147
I am hoping that someone with adequate knowledge of the topic can take a look at this text and decide what to do with each element, rather than have it either left as is or removed en-masse. Downsize43 (talk) 23:20, 15 October 2010 (UTC)

Removal of alternative theories
Just in case anyone wants to review this wholesale removal, the subject text is below.

Downsize43 (talk) 01:46, 20 March 2011 (UTC)

a) A little known theory about Thunderbolt.
It is claimed in nearly every book about Thunderbolt that, throughout his career, he never shot at any one, including the police. However what is not so well known is the reason for this. Thunderbolt's wife, Mary Ann Bugg, by her aboriginal heritage, had a total hatred of guns due to the way so many of her people had been murdered by the white population of the time. During her time with Thunderbolt she instilled in him this same total hatred of guns and of shooting at people. Also a simple checking of history will show that all aboriginal people of the time had a complete hatred of guns because of the numbers of their people that had been shot by the whites. It is claimed that there is no reason to believe other than that Fred hated using guns especially as he had been initiated into the local Kamilaroi tribe near Gunnedah and would also have shared their hatred of guns. This may be an important factor in the subsequent chasing and death of Thunderbolt. The area at Stroud was once occupied by the Gringgai clan (Mary Ann's tribe) of the Wanaruah aboriginal people. It is known that the Wanaruah had trade and ceremonial links with the Kamilaroi people.

b) What caused the beginning of the career of Thunderbolt?
In 1850 Fred's uncle, George Ward, married Charlotte Nixon in St Peter's Church of England in Armidale. In the next 4 years they had 2 children. Fred and his Uncle George were employees of Tocal Station near Patterson. In 1854 George was instructed to take a herd of cattle to the Maitland sale, despite the knowledge that the Hunter River was in flood. While crossing the river George was drowned. About 18 months later the Ward family, George's brother William (Harry), owner of nearby Lamb's Valley Station 12 miles west of Tocal, and 2 nephews, James & John Garbutt, commenced stealing horses from Tocal Station. Fred, also an employee of Tocal, was asked to assist in droving the cattle to the Windsor Sale Yards where Fred and James Garbutt were arrested. James was charged with stealing horses; however, Fred was initially charged with stealing horses but this was reduced to being in possession of stolen horses and he should have received a lesser sentence of 6 years served locally. Instead he received the full sentence of 10 years, to be served in the hated Cockatoo Island prison. The beginning of Fred Ward's "life of crime" was caused totally by the action of the management of Tocal Station, in sending his Uncle George into Maitland to a cattle sale knowing that the Hunter River was in flood, causing the devastating death of George.

c) Was Thunderbolt married?
Many authors claim that Mary Ann and Thunderbolt were not married despite this testimony shown in the article below. The problem is there seems to be no record of the marriage at Stroud, as often happened at that time. I have found several cases of well known family marriages in Stroud at the time, where there are no records of the marriage. We remember reading in the North-West Champion of December 7, 1929, that an old lady whom I knew, Mrs Dreamer, in an article entitled "The Days That Were”, claimed that she saw Thunderbolt married at Stroud. The old lady seemed to have a clear recollection of the event, and she told the story in these words, I quote:  "It was at Stroud and I was going to school at the time. Frederick Ward, that was Thunderbolt's name, was a nice looking young fellow, and the girl he married was Mary Bugg, daughter of Mr Jimmy Bugg who looked after the Australian Pastoral Company’s station at Port Stevens. There was a great to-do at the church the day the wedding was on, and we were all let out of school to see them come out of church.” At that time, Mary Ann was working in the Anglican School at Stroud, so it is certainly reasonable that the children would be given time to watch the wedding. The parish at that time was not the parish of Stroud but part of the Church of England Parish of the Australian Agricultural Company, which included the area from Wollongong to the Queensland border with the exception of Sydney. The Stroud Website clearly indicates that Thunderbolt was married in the Stroud Anglican Church.

d) Thunderbolt, the new age parent
Arguably Thunderbolt was the first Australian male to take paternity leave. A study of his crimes and personal family life shows that whenever his wife was expecting, he took up to nine months off from his bushranging career to look after his wife and family. So, out of his six-and-a-half-year career, he took nearly two years off looking after his family. According to some aborigines, much of this time was often spent with one of their communities in the Gunnedah area, where he was well hidden and protected from the police. He was, by this time, regarded as one of them. Now to the actual death.

e) The Police were warned of the presence of Thunderbolt.
On the 25th May, 1870 in the late afternoon, the Italian hawker Giovanni Cappasotti, while traveling past Thunderbolt's Rock near Uralla, was held up and relieved of £2/13/6 and some jewelery. He was sent on his way to Tamworth. However, after traveling a little over a mile, he hid his cart in the bushes near Dorrington's farm and rode back to Uralla, through the bush to the east of Thunderbolt's Rock so as not to be detected by Thunderbolt. He advised the police of the presence of Thunderbolt in the area near Blanch's Inn.

f) The two policemen chased after Thunderbolt?
Constable Mulhall was on duty, however Constable Walker was also present in plain clothes, having been ill for several days. Both policemen set after Thunderbolt. By the time Constable Mulhall reached Thunderbolt's Rock, having the faster horse, he was about 500 yards ahead of Walker. He said his gun went off and his horse turned around and bolted back to Uralla. (A police trained horse did this?) On passing Walker, it is claimed by Walker, Mulhall said, "There they are. I have exchanged shots with them. Go and get the wretches." Walker then commenced his chase of Thunderbolt, knowing that he would not be shot at. Just imagine the turmoil that must have gone through his mind when "this Thunderbolt" started shooting at him. Despite knowing it could not be the real "Thunderbolt" he continued chasing him, shooting the man he was chasing, then advising his superiors that he had shot "Thunderbolt". They advised their superiors in Sydney immediately, who advised the press. The next day the truth was discovered when they found that the body did not have the recorded markings of Fred Ward. Thus commenced the police cover-up which has continued to this day.

g) Why didn't Thunderbolt have his favorite horse, Combo?
Fred Ward used to follow the races and after the race would often take possession of the best of the horses so he could always outrun the police. At this time he had a special horse called Combo, which he had taken from Goonoo Goonoo Station south of Tamworth. On this particular day "this Thunderbolt" at Uralla did not have Combo. His own horse was exhausted. A young man, James Coghlan, was leading 3 horses which his employer had recently purchased at Scone and was taking them to Ebor. He had been leading the horses all day in an attempt to get home as quickly as possible, so the horses were totally exhausted. Not knowing this, Thunderbolt commandeered one of the horses to try it out. At that moment Walker arrived on the scene. Walker chased "Thunderbolt" for approximately 2 miles in a southwesterly direction until they reached Kentucky Creek, where Thunderbolt abandoned his exhausted horse and proceeded to cross the creek. Walker then states that he shot the horse, to the later upset of James Coghlan.

h) Now let us look at the "facts" of the killing of Thunderbolt.
According to the second statement of Constable Walker written on Sunday 29 May 1870, “…he immediately plunged his horse into the water and his horse stumbled and went underneath the water when Ward made a rush at the Constable into the water with his Revolver in his hand. The Constable fired and Ward fell forward into the water and went under and when he came up he tried to catch hold of the Constable who then struck him on the top of the head with the Revolver, the Constable rode his horse out of the water and tied him up, he then drew Ward out of the Creek and believed him to be quite dead…….. the Constable then took him out to look for the body of Ward but could not find it, returned to Blanch's………found the body at daylight." Phillip Pomeroy, in his paintings of the event in the McCrossin’s Mill Museum, Uralla, using the description by Constable Walker, shows Walker on his horse above Ward shooting down upon him. If as portrayed, and according to Walker's own statement, the bullet entering the left chest above the heart would have passed through the body, exiting at the rear of the body above the right hip. There is also the following: "Walker returned and found the body next morning about 9 o'clock." There is no direct evidence, but the more reliable secondary sources basically claim:  "When they returned next day they found that Ward had crawled a little distance into the bush, and was still alive, but he did not survive the trip back to Uralla…. when the police examined the body and clothing they found that Ward's revolver had been empty when Walker shot and clubbed him."(100 Australian Bushrangers, 1789–1901, Allan M Nixon.)  Two days after the death of Thunderbolt, Walker reenacted the shooting for a photographer, Mr Cunningham of Armidale. "Mr A Cunningham has taken several excellent photographics to illustrate the end of Thunderbolt, and other matters connected with it. Of Ward's dead horse there are two views. There are three different views of the spot on which the final struggle took place, Mr. Walker being shown supposedly in the same dress and on the same horse as he had when he came upon the W. side of the creek; the reality of the scene being added to by Mr. Smoker, of Uralla, representing, on the E. side, Ward - each with weapon levelled at his opponent. To secure a good view, Mr Cunningham took the trouble to cut down several trees. Then there are two portraits of Mr Walker, one being full length; while there are three of Thunderbolt when he was lying dead, after the post-mortem examination. One represents him with his hat off, another with his hat on, and the third is his profile." (A copy of this photo can be viewed in the Uralla Visitors Centre). Unfortunately he turned up in uniform. As a result many of the later drawings of the death of Thunderbolt shows Walker in uniform. The photo shows a different view of the shooting to the one in Walker's original statement. It shows Walker directly across the other side of the creek and several metres from Ward and just slightly above him; this, however, is more in line with Dr Spasshat's autopsy report, except for the difference in the distance between them, “…..; mark of a gunshot wound below left collar bone towards the armpit; on examination I found the aperture communicated with the lungs, both of which, right and left, had been penetrated; there was an aperture as if the exit of a ball on the right side of the chest, three inches below and two inches anterior to lower point right shoulder blade; there was a large quantity of fluid blood in cavity of pleura; the wound was just such as might have been inflicted by a pistol bullet discharged in immediate proximity to and rather above the body; I am of the opinion that the wound was the cause of death……” (In September 2003, I gave copies of all material pertaining to the death of Thunderbolt - Dr Spasshatt's autopsy report, Constable Walker’s statement, and the copy of the death photo of Thunderbolt – to Dr Godfrey Oettle, the recently retired Director of the Division of Forensic Medicine in the Department of Health of New South Wales. His finding states that, according to the details of the autopsy, Thunderbolt could only have lived a maximum of 3 minutes after being shot. Report of Dr Oettle, Former Director of the Division of Forensic Medicine in the Department of Health of New South Wales - dated December 4th, 2003  As stated to you previously, Dr. Spasshatt has defined injuries clearly and refers to only two bullet wounds, the one on the front of the chest being the entry wound and that on the right side of the chest, being the exit. He mentions that both lungs were penetrated by the bullet, that the mouth contained blood which was consistent with blood rising from the lungs into the pharynx during the terminal attempts to breathe. The blood flow to the rest of the body was diverted by that lost by the lungs' injuries, to the chest cavities and the air passages. I would expect him to lose both motor and cognitive function within about ten seconds because of the blood being lost through the lung injuries and both lungs collapsing. This figure is bourne out both by my experience of similar circumstance and by others documented in the USA. On occasion life as evidenced by occasional deep breaths can extend for about 3 minutes depending on the severity of the injuries received, but, in any case, no motor function can be expected after about the shorter figure given above and this might be very much less depending on whether the great vessels at the base of the heart were involved in the injuries, let alone the heart. However, Dr. Spasshatt mentions only the lung injuries. Lung collapse together with the injuries would be more than enough to cause sudden death and rapid lack of motor function compounded by breathing in water if the account of the incident is correct. He also makes no mention of any head injury or any other gun shot injury. I hope this answers your questions and I would be happy to hear from you should you wish to discuss it further. Godfrey Oettle This certainly does not agree with Constable Walker’s report.)

i) What happened to Thunderbolt’s body
Early on the 27th May the body of Thunderbolt was taken back to Blanch's Inn and examined by Dr Spasshatt from Armidale. It is interesting to note that although there were positive identification marks recorded in police records for the identification of Fred Ward, especially the mole and warts ("Ward is a native of Windsor, New South Wales; a laborer, 27 years of age, 5 feet 8 ¼ inches high, hazel grey eyes, mole on right wrist and two warts back of middle finger of left hand.") they were not used to identify this body as that of Fred Ward. It is also interesting that the report by Dr Spasshatt given at the inquest was not the one sent to Sydney, but the one rewritten on Sunday at the police instructions after the burial. It was carefully dated 29 May, by Dr Spasshatt, as proof of the cover up. During the next few days over 300 people viewed the body and all agreed that “It's Thunderbolt all right.” Many authors and researchers misused this statement to show “It's Fred, all right” despite the fact, at that time he was known by the general public only as “Captain Thunderbolt“ and the various other names suspected of belonging to the person, such as Fred Britten, Michael Blake, Fred Ward, William (Harry) Ward, Fred Blake, etc., were only rumours. Young Will Monckton, who had served one year of a six-year gaol sentence in Darlinghurst for being the companion of Thunderbolt, and was, by chance, returning to Armidale on Saturday, was ordered to identify the body at Uralla on Sunday, May 29, four days after the shooting. Will had been caught with Thunderbolt in the Tenterfield region 12 months earlier and gaoled. While in gaol he had heard that Thunderbolt had been shot by the police in the right knee at the top of the Moonbi’s but had escaped. At that time he knew he had been with Fred Ward aka "Thunderbolt" near Torrington, not long before he surrendered to the police, and that Fred Ward was not the “Thunderbolt” shot at Moonbi. He was taken off the carriage in Uralla to identify the body and used the scar on the right knee as positive identification that the body was that of Fred Ward. The police immediately accepted his identification and excused him from the remainder of his sentence, even though they did not have the right under the law to do this. The body was buried that Sunday afternoon in the edge of the Uralla Cemetery in unhallowed ground. After the burial the amended report was filled out by Walker to confirm the person deceased was Fred Ward aka “Captain Thunderbolt”. Constable Walker's statement given on Sunday was the one sent to Sydney, as the evidence given as part of the autopsy report, not the actual one used on Thursday, as it did not include the name Fred Ward. Thus began the official police cover up of the truth of "The Death of Thunderbolt" Present at the funeral was a very tall woman, for those days (5 feet 8 inches), dressed in a full-length black gown and a heavy black veil. A journalist stated that "after the funeral it was noted that she left without speaking to anyone"; however, it was also noted "she walked away with a very manly gait." Was this Fred saying goodbye to his Uncle Harry? This has always been held by the family as fact.

j) Where was Fred’s horse, Combo?
On the Saturday after the death of Thunderbolt (28 May) two young policemen were at the races in Glen Innes and saw Combo tethered there. Hiding, they watched the horse for some time until they saw a man, whom they personally identified as “Thunderbolt”, appear and quickly mount the horse before they could stop him. He left the area in a southeasterly direction towards Wards Mistake. He went over the steep cliff into the gorge area. Being inexperienced horsemen the young policemen were not able to follow him. On returning to Armidale they submitted their report of the day's activities to their commanding officer, only to be told that “Thunderbolt” had been shot 3 days previously. To justify what they had been doing during the day, they insisted on filing their report. I have been told the report has been seen in the police archives in Sydney as recently as several years ago, however the police have not permitted me to view it.

k) What happened to this “Thunderbolt”
In the Ebor area where he was heading, lived his mother Sarah Ann (Ward) Edwards, my great-great-grandmother. I believe he went to his mother's home. If you go out to Hernani and talk to the families of the oldest residents in the area they will all tell you that "Great Aunty or Great Grandma danced with Thunderbolt at the weekly Saturday night dances for 6 weeks after 'the death of Thunderbolt'." It is my belief that during those 6 weeks Fred used his day times to call on all his caves and hiding places in the area at Lansdowne near Taree, Barrington, Moonbi, Uralla, Black Mountain, Torrington, and Boonoo Boonoo, near Tenterfield and several other caves and rescue his “earnings”. It has been reported as being as much as 20,000 pounds, about $1,000,000 in today's money. Despite people searching the area of his caves for the last 140 years, all that has been reported as having been found is one bottle containing about 20 pounds in a cave west of Singelton. I believe that at the end of the 6 weeks Fred, with his mother Sarah Ann Shepherd (her real married name, as she does not appear to have married my Grandfather Edwards) as a companion, went to Morpeth on the Hunter River near Newcastle, then by boat to San Francisco. An 1871 American state census shows that a Frederick Ward (file #SC 289) and a Sarah Shepherd (file #SC 319) both arrived in America in late 1870. This seems to be an amazing coincidence. Sarah Shepherd (my great-great grandmother's correct married name) was the mother of Fred Ward. According to our family records she disappeared at about the same time as Thunderbolt's death, yet her mother, Sophia Ward's death certificate in 1874 shows Sarah as still being alive. It is my belief that these are our Fred Ward & his mother, Sarah, who went to America in late 1870 and then moved on to Canada. When the gold petered out in California they moved to Alberta, Canada where Fred stayed until the end of the gold rush there in the late 1800s, then moved to live out his life in Ottawa, Canada, dying in the early 1900s.

l) The burial of Fred Ward in Canada
Two days before her death old Granny Walker asked her daughter if she remembered a visitor coming to "Rosedale" one night and said, "I promised to tell you someday who he was. It was Thunderbolt the bushranger... and if every thing went off right with him, he is now in Canada." The next piece of evidence... was supplied by a Mr (Charles) White, a cousin of Fred Ward's, in 1886, and it came to light through Aubrey Spencer's father making the accidental acquaintance of White at Narrabri West a few years after the stranger's visit to Rosedale. Naturally enough on one occasion their conversation turned to bushrangers, and speaking of Thunderbolt, Matthew Spencer remarked that he had known him very well, and regarded him as a fine fellow, and one who had been driven to bushranging. Fred Ward had actually worked for him in his youth. White replied, "Since you have such an opinion of Thunderbolt, it might interest you to know that he is my cousin. I'll show you something." He went into the house and returned a few minutes later with a letter, the top and bottom of which were turned down, so that the address, date and signature were all concealed. "Do you know that handwriting?" he asked. "Know it anywhere," declared Matthew Spencer. "It's poor old Fred Ward's." "It is," White confirmed, and he flattened out the sheet of paper; the signature was unmistakable, "Fred Ward"... the date proved to be less than six months old. It must, therefore, have been written some sixteen years after Thunderbolt had been officially declared dead. Moreover, the address showed the letter to have come from Canada, and in this detail confirmed the independent statement of Old Mrs Walker on her death bed, and, incidentally, of my father's belief that Ward had gone to some place in North America. (from 'The Early History of Moree and Adjacent Districts' Article No. 22, Moree Public Library) A story told by Mr R S Spencer (quoted from the “Western Stock & Station Journal in the ‘Uralla Times’, 4/9/1969  The letter was written in Canada, the date January 21, 1892. The signature was one word – Fred. After a careful examination of the document, my father remarked, “But, good God, man, it can’t be true?”   “Yes, Mr Spencer,” said White. "It’s quite true.”   (…) During my visit to Canada in 1937 my enquiries at Ottawa resulted in the production of further evidence to support the claim I have advanced herein. I was informed that in Ottawa Cemetery an Australian named Frederick Ward lies buried.   Is it the grave of Thunderbolt, however, no-one has been able to locate this grave in any Ottawa cemetery. To me, the irresistible conclusion, drawn from the foregoing evidence, is “Yes”.

m) Who then is buried in Uralla Cemetery?
It has always been the belief of the family that the person buried at Uralla is Fred's uncle William (aka Harry). By the late 1860s things started to get "too hot" for Harry in the Maitland area and he came to join Fred, mainly operating in the southern area around Uralla. I believe he was the "Thunderbolt" shot by the police at Moonbi in early 1869. On the death of William's mother Sophia in 1874, her death certificate shows both Fred & William ("Harry") as being deceased. Fred is naturally shown because of his death certificate, however there is no death certificate in Australia for William (aka Harry) Ward despite a thorough search of all states BDM registers by myself and other direct family members. I believe the death certificate for Fred is in fact the death certificate for Harry. Recently talking to a local Aboriginal elder from Gunnedah I was told that it was "their knowledge that it was not Fred Ward buried here in Uralla in unhallowed ground." As he was married "to one of them", Mary Ann (an aboriginal girl) and had lived with them in the bush for several years, they regarded him as "family". If it had been Fred buried in unhallowed ground they would have dug him up and buried him in their local secret burial ground. She was very emphatic that it was not Fred Ward buried in Uralla. They normally don't talk about such things to us "whiteys", however she was in total agreement with what I had said especially regarding who was in the grave. As a further confirmation of this story I received this information in the last week of October, 2003. "But one last thing - the local Aboriginal community claim Captain Thunderbolt as one of their own, a fellow Aboriginal. This could have been true in traditional Aboriginal culture where a person of any ethnic background who goes through the initiation ordeals was considered a member of the tribe! This was true when we lived with an Aboriginal tribe (the Miruwung in the Kimberlies in the 1970s)."

year of birth
text of article was modified in several edits to change 1836 to 1833. A reference cited at the bottom mentions 1836 with uncertainty here. The category is 1836. Would anyone object to changing the text back to 1836 as the year of birth? 69.126.127.193 (talk) 03:33, 9 April 2011 (UTC)
 * The Australian Dictionary of Biography (http://adbonline.anu.edu.au/biogs/A060379b.htm) has the year of birth as 1835, just to throw another snake in the ring. Downsize43 (talk) 11:31, 18 April 2011 (UTC)
 * The article now claims 1833, 1835 and 1836. If it's uncertain, let's just say so. Pburka (talk) 16:26, 8 April 2012 (UTC)

New Captain Thunderbolt book and claims
I recently picked up a copy of the book "Thunderbolt, Scourge of the Ranges", by G. James Hamilton with Barry Sinclair, and was initially intrigued. However I found it to be highly opinionated and driven by an agenda of its own. I also found it to be poorly written, very difficult to read and therefore quickly put it back down again. My advice is to treat this material very cautiously. Msiminski (talk) 13:14, 29 September 2012 (UTC)

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Heavy reliance on a single book and a website by the same author
This article appears to rely almost entirely on a single book by Baxter and a website which appears to have been written by the same author (Baxter). Time permitting, a larger diversity of references should be sought. IntoCaves (talk) 03:34, 28 December 2020 (UTC) In answer to the unsigned comment above. I have been researching Fred Ward alias "Captain Thunderbolt" for about 12 months now and have read the majority of so called factual books about the bushranger and his life. I have also tracked down many of the original goal and court documents. I have found Carol Baxter's book to be the most factual and based on original documentation, such as police records, goal records, court documents and affidavit statements presented in court. Baxters book "Captain Thunderbolt and his lady" is an account backed up by the most impressive list of references, far outweighing the short list of often unsubstantiated and hearsay which the other books rely on. You can find many of the references and actual documentation on the books listed on the web page found at. I will state for the record, that I have absolutely NO affiliation with baxter nor the publishers, nor am I an acquaintance of Baxter. IntoCaves (talk) 03:34, 28 December 2020 (UTC)

William Monckton
He may not in true terms have been a Gentleman but he did assist my Great Grandfather when he stumbled onto Thunderbolts camp. He took him in and kept him safe from an abusive step father. 1.144.107.68 (talk) 08:20, 5 January 2022 (UTC)

English
Present tens  it have forms                           1.present simple tens        2.present continous         3.present perfect            4.present perfect continous  — Preceding unsigned comment added by 41.186.78.37 (talk) 21:26, 18 May 2022 (UTC)

Photograph - Hat Added?
It seems worth noting that the full sized, original version of the image used in this article (visible here at the NSW State Library site) does not include the hat, which appears to have been edited onto the image at some later time. Is there a reason to use the modified image rather than the original? Maondoza (talk) 22:56, 14 August 2023 (UTC)

Captain Thunderbolts wife was my great great great grandmotherX
Mary Ann Bugg was my great great grandmother Seassed (talk) 05:49, 8 November 2023 (UTC)