Overview

Most Australians think they know the full Kelly story. James Wallace: The Kelly Gang Sympathiser is about a man who was complicit in keeping the Kelly gang at large for two years, but who has somehow been largely forgotten in the annals of Australian history. James Wallace was a respectable schoolteacher and lifelong friend of gang member Joe Byrne. Working away behind the scenes to protect his friend, Wallace helped to keep the gang provisioned. He contributed to critical letters that told Ned Kelly's side of the story, fed misleading information to the police, assisted in the collection of the plough shares used in making the gang's armour, and was likely complicit in a significant murder prior to the gang's final stand at Glenrowan. Wallace was dismissed from public service after adverse findings were made against him by a Royal Commission established after the gang's demise. Under threat of prosecution, Wallace fled to Queensland. Six years would pass before it was safe for him to return, whereupon he commenced a career as a journalist, before leaving his family for a new life with a clairvoyant known as Madame Spontini.

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9781923216457

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An exhaustive investigation into the life of a man who helped keep the Kelly Gang at large.' David MacFarlane, owner of the Ned Kelly: The True Story blog, which tells the truth about an Australian myth. 'A great read about the life and times of one of the more important of the Kelly Gang sympathisers.' Bill Denheld, Kelly historian, host of the website 'Iron Icon'.

Author Information

PETER NEWMAN is a retired planning consultant with an interest in Australian history. His work in regional Victoria often took him to 'Kelly Country' in North-Eastern Victoria. During one of his visits, Peter happened across a publication about James Wallace. His interest piqued, Peter spent several years sifting through the records and original documents, leaving no stone unturned in his search. James Wallace: The Kelly Gang Sympathiser is the culmination of Peter's enquiries, and paints a defining portrait of a man who played a key role in one of Australia's greatest stories

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