Lost

The book Lost! commemorates the story of Jane Duff.

Jane was born on 7th January 1857 near Horsham, and is remembered for the events of "Lost in the bush".

In August 1864, on Spring Hill Station between Goroke and Natimuk, the Duff children - Isaac 9, Jane 7 and Frank 3 were asked to collect broom (tea-tree branches) for sweeping the hut floor. They became lost and wandered further into the Nurcoung scrub.

Their parents began searching and were joined by their neighbours.
On the 8th day, Aborigines from other stations - King Richard, Red Cap & Fred - joined the search. In the late afternoon of the 9th day the children were found.

The children had spent over a week without food or water, and walked nearly 100 kilometres.It was Jane's selfless attitude in caring for her younger brother Frank which sparked the interest of the nation.
Jane's schooling was paid for by one of the searchers and neighbouring squatter Alexander Wilson of Vectis and Longerenong homesteads.



Jane married George Turnbull on 24th June 1876, and reared 11 children (5 predeceased her). When George died of fever, Jane was left in troubled circumstances. She died at Horsham on 20th January 1932.

The story was told in the "Fourth Book" of the Education Department's school reader.

An appeal to Victorian school children raised money for a headstone over her grave, and to a memorial (by the roadside at the Jane Duff Highway Park near Duffholme) to her 1864 endeavours. Unveiling the memorial, Mr Graham declared her importance to a national self-image of the pioneering legend. Stating that Jane's actions were part of the wider contribution by women to opening up the land and played a part in the development of the Australian identity.

The plight of the Duff children has been covered in art and story by a number of people over the years. In September 1864, well-known engraver Nicholas Chevalier, working for the Illustrated Melbourne Post, drew Jane caring for her brothers.

In the 1970s Peter Dodds made the film version of Lost in the bush on location west of Mt Arapiles and used local talent in the roles.

Famous goldfields artist S.T. Gill painted the finding of the Duff Children in his Australian sketchbook. And equally famous - artist William Strutt (who sketched the Burke & Wills Expedition, and painted the epic Black Thursday bushfire) in 1901 wrote Cooey, or, The Trackers of Glenferry - a version of the story and illustrated it with beautiful watercolours and sketches.

The story has been told in rhyme for the young, but the most comprehensive retelling is L.J. Blake's Lost in the bush, which includes the local history surrounding the actual event.

Now, another author has entered - Stephanie Owen Reeder has just published Lost! a true tale from the bush (the cover is at the beginning of this post). This was inspired by Strutt's Cooey, and features many of his illustrations. What makes Stephanie's retelling different is that she has finished each chapter with an informative section on how children lived in the 1860s, much of it illustrated with works from the National Library's Picture Collection.