A life with few boundaries

“Make no little plans, they have no magic to stir men’s blood…” 

Sir Hubert Wilkins

Sir John Monash described George Hubert Wilkins as the Australian “Lawrence of Arabia”. He is almost certainly the most important South Australian that nobody knows. Wilkins was born at Hallett, 170km north of Adelaide, in 1888. His early expertise with cameras and planes led him to become a pioneer of aerial photography in the Arctic. At the outbreak of WW1 he returned to Australia, before winning the Military Cross and Bar on the Hindenburg Line. After the war his interest turned to birds. In 1923 he led an expedition by the British Museum to document the birds of Northern Australia. This work lead to medals from the American and Royal Geographical Societies. He was a close friend of Randolph Hearst. His honeymoon included a trip on the maiden flight of the Graf Zeppelin. By 1930 he was attempting to sail a USN submarine under the North Pole. Sir Hubert was knighted by the British in recognition of his life. The US Navy honoured him in a unique way. After his death 1958, they took his ashes to be scattered at the North Pole on the nuclear submarine Skate. #lawrenceofaustralia #letsmakelemonade