James Alpin McPherson
James Alpin Macpherson | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1842 Inverness-shire, Scotland |
| Died | 1895-08-23 Burketown, Queensland, Australia |
| Occupation(s) | Bushranger, stockman, overseer |
| Years active | 1860s (bushranging) |
| Known for | Bushranging in Queensland and New South Wales; "The Wild Scotchman" |
James Alpin Macpherson (1842–23 August 1895), famously dubbed The Wild Scotchman, was a bushranger of Scottish origin who operated in both Queensland and New South Wales during the 1860s. His criminal activities were primarily concentrated in the Wide Bay region before he was ultimately apprehended by local residents near Gin Gin, Queensland.
Early life
Macpherson was born in Inverness-shire, Scotland, as the eldest among eight siblings. In 1855, his family relocated to Australia, establishing themselves close to Moreton Bay. His father took up work as a farm labourer, while James attended school in Ipswich, Queensland, where he acquired fluency in French and German. After completing his education, he found employment at a stoneyard and later moved to a cattle station, gaining practical skills in cattle mustering and honing his marksmanship with a revolver.
Bushranging
On 4 March 1864, Macpherson was involved in the robbery of Richard Willis's public house at Houghton River, where he stole various items and inflicted injuries on Willis. The government placed a £50 reward on his capture. Subsequently, Macpherson fled Queensland for New South Wales with the intention of joining the bushranging gangs led by Ben Hall and Frank Gardiner. During his travels, he committed highway robberies and adopted multiple aliases such as John Bruce, Mar, Kerr, Scotia, and Scotchie.
On 17 August 1864, Macpherson engaged in a gunfight with N.S.W. Police officer Sir Frederick Pottinger; both sustained wounds to their arms before Macpherson managed to escape. Acting on Pottinger's information, police arrested Macpherson near Forbes on 28 February 1865. He was transported to Sydney to face charges for shooting at Pottinger; however, these charges were dropped following Pottinger’s death from an accidental self-inflicted gunshot wound.
Although still wanted for the Willis robbery, Macpherson escaped custody during transfer and recommenced robbing mail coaches around Maryborough, Gayndah, and Gladstone. In early 1866, he twice intercepted mail deliveries between Ipswich and Nanango—once seizing the postman’s horse—and notably returned £1700 in cheques to Queensland’s Governor Sir George Bowen accompanied by a note declaring he had no use for them. In response, the government raised the reward for his capture to £250.
Capture and trials
Macpherson’s apprehension came not through police efforts but through local station workers. On 30 March 1866, at Monduran Station near Gin Gin, two workers named Dougie and Jack (the latter being the nephew of owner William Henry Walsh) informed supervisor William Nott upon sighting Macpherson. Alongside another man known as 'Currie', they armed themselves and tracked Macpherson approximately six miles away. Following a short pursuit and after Nott threatened to shoot him, Macpherson surrendered upon realizing his pursuers were not police due to their slower pace. He was detained overnight at the station before being handed over to authorities at Gin Gin.
Macpherson was brought before the court in Maryborough, where observers remarked that he did not appear either flashy or intimidating. He was then remanded to Brisbane for trial at the Supreme Court regarding the Willis public house robbery but was acquitted of those charges. Afterwards, he returned to Maryborough to face accusations related to mail robberies on 13 September 1866. Convicted on these counts, he received two concurrent sentences of twenty-five years imprisonment at St Helena Island in Moreton Bay. The judge imposed a more severe sentence than usual as a warning to others.
Later life
Macpherson arrived at St Helena on 14 September 1866. On 11 April 1870, during an attempted breakout, he sustained a gunshot wound to his wrist and was apprehended along with six other escapees from the stockade.
In 1874, a clemency petition spearheaded by Rev. B. G. Wilson, with backing from members of the Queensland parliament, resulted in Macpherson's release on 22 December. Following his freedom, he took up work as a stockman at Cressbrook before advancing to the role of overseer at an outstation. It is worth noting that Sylvester Browne, sibling of author Thomas Alexander Browne—renowned for Robbery Under Arms—also served as an outstation manager during this period, indicating that Macpherson’s experiences may have influenced the novel.
Macpherson married Elizabeth Annie Hausfeldt of Isisford in Blackall in 1878. Together, they had six children: four sons and two daughters.
He passed away at the age of 53 on 23 August 1895 in Burketown due to injuries sustained from a horse-riding accident.
Legacy
The town of Gin Gin annually celebrates the Wild Scotsman Festival every March, honoring Macpherson and marking the anniversary of his arrest in 1866.