Complimentary dinner to John McDouall Stuart and party : at the Adelaide Assembly Rooms, on Wednesday, January 21st, 1863

List of toasts to be given by dignitaries during the Complimentary Dinner for John McDouall Stuart and party, held at the Adelaide Assembly Rooms on Wednesday 21 January 1863.

The return of Stuart and his men from their successful exploration across Australia was met with great celebration and fanfare in Adelaide. Stuart himself arrived back in Adelaide by train in December 1862, while other members of the expedition rested north of Adelaide and travelled slowly with the horses. On 21 January 1863 it was arranged so that all members of the expedition met and travelled in a procession through the streets of Adelaide in front of public holiday crowds. A public ceremony was held, attended by the Governor, Sir Dominic Daly and officials.

The banquet was held after the procession and attended by the Governor, prominent Adelaide people and old colonists. According to Webster (1958, p.253) the banquet lasted 'far into the night in consequence of the stupendous list of fourteen toasts, all duly proposed, seconded and replied to, and interspersed with songs.'

An extensive description of the banquet and the preceding procession is given in The Register newspaper of 26 January 1863.

The acclaim for Stuart was however, fleeting, and Stuart returned to England in 1864. He died in 1866, with few mourners at his grave and was buried in Kensal Green cemetery in England.

Despite this, special events have continued to be held in ensuing years to commemorate his famous expeditions. Many of the earlier ones were attended by surviving expedition members. An example shown here is a dinner held at Parliament House in Adelaide on Wednesday 25 July 1962, in honour of the centenary of the crossing of the continent. The dinner was part of a whole week of celebrations. Among the guests at the dinner were several descendents of John McDouall Stuart and members of his party (The Advertiser, 26 July 1962, p.3). As can be seen, the lists of toasts is far more modest than the long list of 1863, along with what we may think of now as quite a simple menu.

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