Michael James LeahyMBE (26 February 1901 – 7 March 1979) was an Australian explorer and gold prospector, famed for his exploration of the Highlands area of Papua New Guinea. He photographed, filmed and published many of his explorations widely.
Leahy was born in Toowoomba, Queensland, the fourth of nine children of Irish migrants Daniel Leahy, a railway guard, and his wife Ellen, née Stone. After an education at the Christian Brothers' College in Toowoomba, Leahy initially worked as a railway clerk before leaving to become a freelance timber cutter. He abandoned this in 1926 upon hearing about the Edie Creek gold strike in New Guinea. He was soon followed to New Guinea by his brothers Paddy, Jim and Danny, while another brother, Tom, remained in Toowoomba.
After suffering from an almost fatal bout of malaria upon trying to reach the gold fields, Leahy instead took a construction and labour management job.
Exploreredit
Michael Leahy filming the exploration party to the Wahgi Valley
Mick Leahy with Mick Dwyer walked across New Guinea in 1930 and disproved the prevailing opinion that the interior of the island was unpopulated. In 1931, together with his brother Patrick, he explored the Kukukuku land.
Mick and his brother Danny were leaders of the 1933 expedition into the Western Highlands. He also made two pioneering airplane flights into the western highlands, discovering the Wahgi Valley, taking thousands of photographs and movie film.[1]
He was one of the first Europeans to reach and climb the country's second tallest mountain – Mount Giluwe (1934). However, Jack Hides had also laid claim to be the first to discover Mount Giluwe, so Leahy went to England in 1935 and forced the Royal Geographical Society to set up a hearing into the two opposing claims. The following year Leahy was awarded the Murchison Award by the Society and published his discoveries in their journal.
Leahy believed in his right to go anywhere in New Guinea, in pursuit of gold, and he was accorded the right to penetrate the Highlands by the Administration. His diaries record that he and his party were responsible for 41 deaths between 1930 and 1934.[2] In 1936, revelations of these deaths led to an inquiry, led by ADO (Assistant District Officer) Jim Taylor. He concluded that Leahy had acted in self-defence, and viewed such deaths as inevitable if prospectors were afforded the right to explore territories beyond the control of the colonial authorities.
The 1983 award-winning documentary film 'First Contact' is about the exploration of the Wahgi Valley and Mount Hagen in Papua New Guinea based on much of Leahy's footage.
^"Michael James (Mick) Leahy (1901–1979)". Leahy, Michael James (Mick) (1901 - 1979). Australian Dictionary of Biography Online. Retrieved 8 May 2007. {{cite book}}: |work= ignored (help)
Bright Sparcs Biographical entry
April 08, 2024
mick, leahy, explorer, leahy, redirects, here, baseball, player, leahy, baseball, other, uses, michael, leahy, disambiguation, michael, james, leahy, february, 1901, march, 1979, australian, explorer, gold, prospector, famed, exploration, highlands, area, papu. Dan Leahy redirects here For the baseball player see Dan Leahy baseball For other uses see Michael Leahy disambiguation Michael James Leahy MBE 26 February 1901 7 March 1979 was an Australian explorer and gold prospector famed for his exploration of the Highlands area of Papua New Guinea He photographed filmed and published many of his explorations widely Michael James LeahyBorn 1901 02 26 26 February 1901Toowoomba QueenslandDied7 March 1979 1979 03 07 aged 78 Zenag Morobe Papua New GuineaParentsDaniel Leahy father Ellen Stone mother Contents 1 Biography 1 1 Early life 1 2 Explorer 2 Bibliography 3 ReferencesBiography editEarly life edit Leahy was born in Toowoomba Queensland the fourth of nine children of Irish migrants Daniel Leahy a railway guard and his wife Ellen nee Stone After an education at the Christian Brothers College in Toowoomba Leahy initially worked as a railway clerk before leaving to become a freelance timber cutter He abandoned this in 1926 upon hearing about the Edie Creek gold strike in New Guinea He was soon followed to New Guinea by his brothers Paddy Jim and Danny while another brother Tom remained in Toowoomba After suffering from an almost fatal bout of malaria upon trying to reach the gold fields Leahy instead took a construction and labour management job Explorer edit nbsp Michael Leahy filming the exploration party to the Wahgi ValleyMick Leahy with Mick Dwyer walked across New Guinea in 1930 and disproved the prevailing opinion that the interior of the island was unpopulated In 1931 together with his brother Patrick he explored the Kukukuku land Mick and his brother Danny were leaders of the 1933 expedition into the Western Highlands He also made two pioneering airplane flights into the western highlands discovering the Wahgi Valley taking thousands of photographs and movie film 1 He was one of the first Europeans to reach and climb the country s second tallest mountain Mount Giluwe 1934 However Jack Hides had also laid claim to be the first to discover Mount Giluwe so Leahy went to England in 1935 and forced the Royal Geographical Society to set up a hearing into the two opposing claims The following year Leahy was awarded the Murchison Award by the Society and published his discoveries in their journal Leahy believed in his right to go anywhere in New Guinea in pursuit of gold and he was accorded the right to penetrate the Highlands by the Administration His diaries record that he and his party were responsible for 41 deaths between 1930 and 1934 2 In 1936 revelations of these deaths led to an inquiry led by ADO Assistant District Officer Jim Taylor He concluded that Leahy had acted in self defence and viewed such deaths as inevitable if prospectors were afforded the right to explore territories beyond the control of the colonial authorities During the Second World War he joined the Royal Australian Air Force as a flight lieutenant and was assigned to the US chief engineer to build an airstrip in Telefomin For his services during the war Leahy was awarded the US Medal of Freedom with bronze palm in 1948 3 appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire MBE in 1952 and made an honorary member of the Explorers Club in 1959 The 1983 award winning documentary film First Contact is about the exploration of the Wahgi Valley and Mount Hagen in Papua New Guinea based on much of Leahy s footage He died at Zenag in Morobe Province in 1979 Bibliography editBooks and papers authored or coauthored by Leahy include Leahy Michael 1936 The Central Highlands of New Guinea Royal Geographical Society London pp 229 262 in the Geographical Journal Leahy Michael J Ed Douglas E Jones 1994 Explorations into Highland New Guinea 1930 1935 Crawford House Press Bathurst Leahy Michael J amp Crain Maurice 1937 The Land That Time Forgot Adventure and Discoveries in New Guinea Funk amp Wagnalls New York References edit Quanchi Max 2005 Historical Dictionary of the Discovery and Exploration of the Pacific Islands The Scarecrow Press p 94 ISBN 0810853957 Middle Kingdom by James Sinclair 2016 p 85 Michael James Mick Leahy 1901 1979 Leahy Michael James Mick 1901 1979 Australian Dictionary of Biography Online Retrieved 8 May 2007 a href Template Cite book html title Template Cite book cite book a work ignored help Bright Sparcs Biographical entry Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Mick Leahy explorer amp oldid 1195962473, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
