John Francis Peggotty (1864–1899), also known as the Birdman of the Coorong , was an Irish bushranger in the colony of South Australia . He reputedly rode an ostrich and wore large amounts of gold jewellery while committing his crimes, although elements of his story are said to be fabricated.
18-508: Meningie may refer to the following. Meningie, South Australia , a town and locality District Council of Meningie , a former local government area in South Australia See also [ edit ] Meningie East, South Australia Meningie West, South Australia Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with
36-612: A warm-summer mediterranean climate ( Köppen: Csb), with warm, dry summers and mild, wetter winters. Mean maxima vary from 26.3 °C (79.3 °F) in February to 15.0 °C (59.0 °F) in July, while mean minima fluctuate between 14.2 °C (57.6 °F) in January and 6.8 °C (44.2 °F) in July. Annual precipitation is moderately low, averaging 467.5 mm (18.41 in) between 123.5 precipitation days. Despite this,
54-623: A large amount of gold jewellery. He served a five-year prison sentence in England, after which he emigrated to Australia. Another version of the story is that his family did not approve of ostrich racing because it involved gambling, and had him shipped to Australia from South Africa. Arriving in Australia, Peggotty was supposed to work on his uncle's farm in Orange, New South Wales , but after being found in possession of his aunt's jewellery,
72-410: A pair of small pistols . He is described as riding his ostrich bare-chested and wearing a large amount of gold jewellery. His victims included travellers on Cobb & Co. coaches. Police dismissed reports of Peggotty until the body of a man was found with large bird prints in the dirt surrounding him. He was confronted by a group of horse mounted police in 1899 while riding his ostrich, and despite
90-586: Is a town on the south-east side of Lake Albert in South Australia . It is on the Princes Highway near The Coorong and was surveyed in 1866. The word Meningie is derived from "the Aboriginal word 'meningeng' meaning 'place of mud'". The town was surveyed between March and June 1866 by W. Farquhar without any proclamation. Land was offered for sale on 23 August 1866. The name also
108-562: Is also a Meningie Garden Club, Meningie & Districts Lions Club, and several church groups that meet regularly. Meningie is located within the federal division of Barker , the state electoral district of MacKillop , and the local government area of the Coorong District Council . John Francis Peggotty John Francis Peggotty, sometimes known as Liam Peggotty, was born in County Limerick 1864. It
126-479: Is directly opposite. In May 2013, a statue of an ostrich wearing a saddle was unveiled to commemorate the story of a local Irish bushranger, John Francis Peggotty , also known as "Birdman of the Coorong". Meningie is home to The Lakelander , a regional community newspaper whose geographical coverage includes Tailem Bend, Salt Creek, Narrung, Coonalpyn and Tintinara. The newspaper, first issued on 25 June 1976,
144-487: Is published in a magazine format. Meningie has a strong sporting culture, and has a well maintained oval, a fully watered, par 72, 18-hole golf course, bike tracks/ motocross jumps, sailing club, and also an airstrip for gliders, light aircraft and balloons. Meningie has a local Australian rules football club, founded around 1890, known as the Meningie Bears. On 12 December 2007, Meningie player Brodie Martin
162-432: Is reported that he was born three months prematurely, and never grew larger than the size of a seven-year-old child. His small stature was ideal for his first job as a chimney sweep . As a young man, Peggotty travelled to South Africa, where he learnt how to ride ostriches. He then travelled to England where he reputedly began breaking into houses by climbing down the chimney. It was also in England that he began wearing
180-728: The "long established name" on 24 August 2000 and which include the Government Town of Meningie. Meningie was the first place in Australia to have ADSL broadband installed without using a Telstra DSLAM . Agile Communications installed their own DSLAM in Meningie in October 2003, following on from having established a microwave network connecting to Adelaide in May 2001. Agile's associated internet service provider , Internode Systems offered services through this DSLAM. Meningie has
198-419: The ostrich was recovered and a trail of blood was seen travelling away from the bird, but the body of Peggotty was never found. His amassed fortune, reputedly more than a million dollars worth, which he wore on his body, was never recovered. Some doubt the veracity of the story of Peggotty, claiming that the story has been perpetuated to boost local tourism. Meningie erected a statue of an ostrich wearing
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#1732794086919216-418: The police opening fire and giving chase, Peggotty escaped. Peggotty is believed to have committed at least 12 hold-ups and one more murder. On 17 September 1899, during the commission of a hold-up near the town of Meningie , Peggotty was shot and critically wounded by his victim, Henry Carmichael. The ostrich on which Peggotty was riding was also shot, and fled with Peggotty still mounted on it. The body of
234-616: The range of rare and vulnerable wildlife that the Lake and wetlands support. There are local 4WD tracks, bush walking trails, and indigenous cultural journeys at Camp Coorong. The Meningie Cheese Factory Museum Inc. is wholly owned and operated by volunteers, and is both educational and a tourist attraction for the town. It is alongside the Cheese Factory Restaurant and the Lake Albert Caravan Park which
252-526: The title Meningie . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Meningie&oldid=891929679 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Meningie, South Australia Meningie ( / m ə ˈ n ɪ ŋ ɡ i / mə- NING -ghee )
270-551: The town has 61.0 clear days and 120.7 cloudy days per annum. Extreme temperatures have ranged from 46.1 °C (115.0 °F) on 24 January 2019 to −3.3 °C (26.1 °F) on 22 July 1972. Meningie has attractions and amenities for travellers and is the closest township to the Coorong National Park. The Lake provides visitors with many scenic locations and places to fish, swim, kayak, jet ski and water ski / wake-board. Bird watchers also enjoy coming to see
288-617: Was asked to leave. He may have resumed his criminal activity in Adelaide , of burglary through chimneys. He is also alleged to have recruited a gang of young boys to work with him. He moved to the Coorong region in 1898, and found a wild ostrich on the road. Ostriches had been imported from South Africa during the late 19th century to be farmed for their feathers. Peggotty became a bushranger. Riding on his ostrich, Peggotty would surprise his victims with his appearance, holding them up with
306-497: Was rookie listed to Australian Football League (AFL) club Adelaide , becoming the first player from Meningie to be play for an AFL club. As of 2020 the league coach is Alex Scott. Other sporting clubs in Meningie include the Meningie Motorcycle Club, Lake Albert Golf Club, Meningie Sailing Club, Meningie Bowling Club, Meningie Pony Club, Meningie Netball Club, Meningie Aero Club and Lake Albert Gun Club. There
324-520: Was used for an "adjoining private subdivision of sections 104, 106/9 and 111" in the cadastral unit of the Hundred of Bonney . A school was opened in 1869. A jetty was erected in 1867, with paddle steamers operating between Meningie and other ports on Lake Albert and Lake Alexandrina until 1927/1928. The town ceased to operate as a port in December 1936. Boundaries for the locality were created for
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