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Austin Texas Welcomes Tom Christian - visitor from Pitcairn Island
June 19th, 2002 We were honored Wednesday by the presence of Tom Christian - Great, Great, Great, Grandson of Fletcher Christian of "Mutiny on the Bounty" fame. Tom is a resident of Pitcairn Island, a small (2 sq. miles) island in the South Pacific approximately 3,000 miles from New Zealand. Tom was recently awarded special recognition as a Member of the British Empire by Queen Elizabeth II. Tom left Pitcairn in April and is visiting friends and relatives who live in the United States, Eastern Asia, and the U.K. During his travels, he has been attending speaking engagements abroad to help defer the expensive cost of travel. Tom was invited to speak at the 2002 Dallas Ham Radio convention two weeks ago, and has been staying with friends in Texas for the last couple of weeks. We were lucky enough to have him come visit Austin yesterday and give a presentation on Pitcairn Island life and also a story about their recent journey to Ducie Island, some 292 miles away. Ducie island is one of the islands in the Pitcairn group. This presentation was sponsored by the 3M corp. Amateur Radio Club, and the Central Texas DX and Contesting Club. Many a great tale has been told about the famous "Mutiny on the Bounty". In 1789, Fletcher Christian led a group of sailors on the HMS Bounty to rise up against their leader, Captain Bligh, and set him and many of his men adrift at sea in an open boat. Fletcher and his mutineers then took the HMS Bounty to uninhabited Pitcairn Island, and burned and sunk the Bounty in the bay of the island. The men were determined to live out their remaining days living on a tropical island in the South Pacific. Sounds wonderful, doesn't it? Tom, who is married and has four grown daughters, is an wonderful story teller. Pitcairn Island has it's own dialect, although most inhabitants speak fluent English. Tom's presentation told of life on Pitcairn Island, the history of the Mutiny on the Bounty, and of their recent trip to neighboring Ducie Island, which is 292 miles away. After the presentation, we took Tom to Austin's famous "Oasis" restaurant, and it was well attended by many local Amateur Radio Operators. photo1, photo2, photo3, photo4, photo5, photo6. Tom will be attending a celebration on the Isle of Man soon, then will be returning to Pitcairn by way of New Zealand later next month. |
