‘Detective Ward indeed made things very warm for the gang in the Beechworth district, and the gang vowed vengeance against him. Ward was continually receiving letters from them in Joe Byrne’s handwriting threatening his life. On one occasion he was informed in this way that if they could lay their hands on him they would … Continue reading Detective Ward
One morning while looking for some cows that had strayed, Anne Sherritt passed an unoccupied hut, ‘about six or seven miles from Beechworth’ and saw Joe getting on Music. She asked him what he was doing there and Joe replied that he was “looking for Hare, to shoot him.” After further conversation with Joe, Anne … Continue reading A Search for Stray Cows
If life as an outlaw wasn’t hard enough, on top of this were the health issues Ned was also dealing with. While being far removed from the comforts of life inside the law, Ned was suffering from sciatica, a chronic condition caused by damage to the sciatic nerve, which would have left him with considerable … Continue reading The Health of Ned Kelly
The term bushranger is defined as being ‘an outlaw living in the bush’, or in America, ‘a person who has broken the law, especially one who remains at large or is a fugitive,’ with both of these definitions relevant to Joe’s situation. Living outside the law, Joe had been stripped of the right to live … Continue reading The Bushranger
“It is now known for a certainty that Byrne often slept on the premises of a man who lives within two miles of Beechworth. This man, on hearing of the destruction of the gang and the death of Byrne, absolutely shed tears." The man may have been Dick Murphy, a Sebastopol local who was a … Continue reading A Hut in the Woolshed
The following description of Joe was made after the raid at Jerilderie. “Byrne stands nearly six feet high, long features, fair complexion and an effeminate cast of countenance, and of a nervous disposition; his manner is quiet and he appears to a casual observer an inoffensive man.” From the Bendigo Advertiser, 19 February 1879.
On the 1st of September 1879, Joe rode to the Sherritt selection at Sheepstation Creek with a ‘threatening letter’ he had written, addressed to Detective Ward. He found Jack busy harrowing and told him he had a letter he wanted posting and that it would be requiring a stamp. Jack was hesitant, but agreed when … Continue reading A Threatening Letter
On a wintry night in early June 1880, Joe crept along the old mining race at Sebastopol and visited his mother, Margret. Here, he collected some clean clothes and filled his belly with warm stew. Joe’s visit was reported by his brother Paddy to Jack Sherritt, while the pair were drinking together. According to Jack, … Continue reading A Visit Home
Music was a 16 hand grey thoroughbred who was greatly admired by many who saw her, owing to the mare’s magnificent conformation. She was an honest and surefooted horse, which Joe had achieved by countless hours of riding her down the steep gullies of the Woolshed Valley. Throughout his outlawry, whenever asked about the state … Continue reading Joe’s Grey Mare Music
"I always said this bloody armour would bring us to grief." The armour was never Joe’s idea and nor did he like it. This is evident in the exasperated words he declared to Ned at Glenrowan. “This bloody armour” are not the words of a man who had put forward the idea of mouldboard armour, … Continue reading This Bloody Armour
An Outlaw’s Journal 