About Edmund Kennedy
Edmund Besley Court Kennedy was an explorer in Australia in the mid-19th century. He was the Assistant-Surveyor of New South Wales, working with Sir Thomas Mitchell. Kennedy explored the interior of Queensland and northern New South Wales, including the Thomson River, the Barcoo River, Cooper Creek, and Cape York Peninsula. He died in December 1848 after being speared by Aboriginal Australians in far north Queensland near Cape York. On the homeward journey, Kennedy followed the course of the Warrego River (discovered by Mitchell in 1846), until its course took him too far west, splitting into many channels. Finally he discovered a substantial river which seemed to flow towards the gulf, so he named the river Victoria, after the British Sovereign. She became pregnant which caused a minor scandal and Kennedy sent her off in a ship to Launceston with £50.
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