{"product_id":"2026200012922-secondhand-captain-james-kelly-of-hobart-town","title":"Captain James Kelly Of Hobart Town","description":"\u003cp\u003eEdition: First ed.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition remarks:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBook: Good\u003cbr\u003eJacket: Worn\/faded, no tears\u003cbr\u003ePages: Good\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFew figures loom as large in the annals of early Australian maritime history as Captain James Kelly, the daring Hobart Town seaman whose extraordinary voyages helped chart the wild coastlines of Van Diemen's Land and beyond. K. M. Bowden's meticulous biography chronicles the life of this remarkable navigator, merchant, and adventurer, whose fearless circumnavigation of Tasmania in 1815–16 — accomplished in an open whaleboat — stands as one of the most audacious feats of early colonial exploration. Set against the rugged backdrop of a fledgling Hobart Town, the narrative presents Kelly not merely as a mariner, but as a pivotal figure in the commercial and geographical development of colonial Australia.\n\nBowden writes with scholarly precision and quiet authority, drawing on primary sources to reconstruct a life lived at the violent intersection of sea, commerce, and colonial ambition. The biography illuminates broader themes of frontier resilience, the brutal economics of sealing and whaling, and the indomitable spirit that defined the early settlers of the Antipodes. A must-read for anyone captivated by the untamed maritime world of 19th-century Australia, this work leaves the reader wondering just how much of that vast southern coastline remains shaped by the wake of Kelly's forgotten keel.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Secondhand Stock","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49203278840027,"sku":"2026200012922-SECONDHAND","price":30.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0523\/7646\/9701\/files\/dfbe07af-e030-4bf8-9286-194f1633399c.png?v=1788147357","url":"https:\/\/bookgrocer.com\/products\/2026200012922-secondhand-captain-james-kelly-of-hobart-town","provider":"Book Grocer","version":"1.0","type":"link"}