Captain Thunderbolt

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Horse breaker - horse thief

Using the skills learnt at Tocal, in 1855 Fred Ward headed to northern New South Wales to work as a horse breaker. Eventually this lead him to horse stealing and to a life of crime.

During the gold rushes of the 1850s the demand for stock was great and prices were high. Even though the penalty for stock theft at the time was higher than that of kidnapping, it was a fairly common practice. Disputes over stock ownership were comon; there was no official register of brands and auctioneers often turned a blind eye to the sale of stolen stock.

Fred Ward joined the ranks of horse stealers. He and his two nephews embarked on a daring and brazen scheme.

In April 1856 Fred Ward and the Garbutt brothers stole 15 horses from Tocal along with 60 horses from a neighbouring property. The Tocal horses were branded with a 'CR' brand belonging to Charles Reynolds. On arrival at Windsor the gang exploited the fact that brands were not registered and one of the gang assumed the name Charles Ross. The sale went through unhindered.

The theft and subsequent sale were soon pieced together and the gang members arrested. Fred Ward was arrested while breaking-in a colt at Maitland.

Fred Ward faced the East Maitland Quarter Sessions on 13 August 1856. He was found guilty of receiving and sentenced to 10 years hard labour on Cockatoo Island in Sydney.

Further information is available in the book Captain Thunderbolt - Horsebreaker to Bushranger which you can buy from Tocal [details]

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