Thunderbolt’s Grave

The last of the New South Wales bushrangers, Frederick Wordsworth Ward, better known as Captain Thunderbolt, ruled the highways and byways of the New England region and beyond for much of the 1860s. He met an untimely death when shot and killed by Constable Alexander Walker on 25 May 1870 at Kentucky Creek, near Uralla. His remains were laid to rest in a quiet ceremony at the Uralla Pioneer Cemetery in John Street. The headstone was erected fifty years later by residents of Uralla after funds were collected by public appeal.

There is now controversy over who is actually buried in the grave or whether anyone is buried there at all!

For families and descendants of earlier Uralla residents including those of Captain Thunderbolt, contact Uralla Shire Council for help in identifying the final resting place of your antecedents and don’t forget to visit the award-winning McCrossin’s Mill Museum for its extensive exhibition about Captain Thunderbolt.