Tommy Freeman was an Echuca based paddle steamer captain and as a youth was coined the Echuca Blondin!

He was a born adventurer, a hard taskmaster and an impatient man – he was said to have served the worst meals on all the paddle steamers on the Murray and his enemies called him ‘Tear Arse Tommy’!

Joseph Hawdon and Charles Bonney were pioneers and overlanders who took cattle from Albury NSW to Adelaide in 1838. This venture helped to fill in the map and would be the impetus for a succession of other parties making the long journey, and for pioneering alternative routes.

Joseph Hawdon and Charles Bonney were pioneers and overlanders who took cattle from Albury NSW to Adelaide in 1838. This venture helped to fill in the map and would be the impetus for a succession of other parties making the long journey, and for pioneering alternative routes.

Andrew Stenhouse owned a grand home called 'Willyama' in St Kilda Victoria. He owned a successful sawmill in Broken Hill NSW prior to purchasing this property. Legend had it that Andrew hid 2,000 gold sovereigns in this home.

In the 1850s Christopher Bagot was considered one of the most successful squatters in the Riverina region of NSW.

George S Melville, nicknamed ‘Frenchy’, was born in about 1815 in Scotland. He was a convict who was involved in the famous McIvor Diggings gold escort robbery in July 1853.

The Murray Downs Homestead is a heritage-listed homestead at Moulamein Road, Murray Downs, NSW, just over the bridge from Swan Hill on the Murray River.

In 1848 the Murray Downs Station was a vast expanse of land. Bell and Wilson applied to lease this from Crown Land. It was originally 150,000 acres.

The Officer brothers purchased the property in 1862.

American Charles Sherwood Stratton, a small statured man, achieved international fame as a member of PT Barnum’s touring sideshow troupe and named himself Tom Thumb – he appeared in Melbourne in 1870 which encouragedAustralian versions.

This episode covers the stories of two Australian 'Tom Thumbs'.

*Warning – there will be terminology used in this episodethat does not reflect modern acceptable terms*