Moondyne Joe
The Man and the Myth
by Ian Elliot
ISBN 085905 244 3, (1998 reprint of 1978 edition with new material), Soft Cover, 148pp, 27 illustrations, 205 grams
$22.00 + POST
Joseph Bolitho Johns, 'Moondyne Joe' (or 'Moonie' to his mates), was a good badman who gallops across the pages of Western Australian history with all the spirit of a wild bush brumby.
His prison sentences were frequently punctuated by spectacular escapes and, in the days when Aboriginal trackers were an integral part of the police force, when a horse was a man's best friend and bushmanship the measure of a man, Joe became a legend in his own time.
His story spans the colonial period from the years of convict transportation to the excitement of Western Australia's gold rushes. Joe's bushranging exploits and his determination to be free have a romantic appeal that cannot be denied.
He may have arrived as a convict and died a pauper, but he left an indelible mark on our folklore.
This edition is limited to 500 copies.
THE AUTHOR
Ian Elliot is a professional historian currently employed as a Senior Conservation Officer with the Heritage Council of Western Australia. He spent many years with the Mapping Branch of the Department of Land Administration researching explorer's diaries for cartographic purposes. The first edition of Moondyne Joe: the Man and the Myth, originally published in 1978, was Ian's first book. Since that time he has written several books on Western Australian history including Mundaring: A History of the Shire. Ian who resides at Glen Forrest in the hills east of Perth, also writes a column for Western 4WDriver magazine and is involved in modern outback exploration through his Wildtrax 4WD expeditions tracing the routes of Western Australia's explorers.