Murdering Gully Road near Table Cape takes its name from the killing of settler Samuel Oakes in May 1858. The name is sometimes treated as a piece of roadside curiosity, but the surviving record concerns a victim, a bereaved family, an accused man and a case that did not produce a conviction.

Newspaper reports describe the discovery

Contemporary reports state that Oakes failed to return home and was found near the road on 6 May. He had been shot and assaulted, and an attempt appeared to have been made to burn or conceal his body. Newspapers often used sensational language, so details should be checked against court and police records where they survive.

View from Table Cape across the north-west coast
Contemporary newspapers carried reports from a small and dispersed district.Gary Houston, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

William Bannon was acquitted

Bannon had reportedly quarrelled with Oakes and was committed for trial on circumstantial evidence. A jury acquitted him at Launceston in July 1858. That verdict matters: he should not be described as the murderer, and no later conviction resolved the case.

Wynyard township in 1919
Oakes was buried at Wynyard, according to contemporary reporting.Tasmanian Archive and Heritage Office Commons, No restrictions, via Wikimedia Commons

A road name is not a crime scene attraction

The road passes homes and farms, with private property beside it. There is no reason to trespass, stop dangerously or search for an exact location. The historical value lies in records and careful interpretation.

Goldie Street in present-day Wynyard
Research belongs in archives and public places, not on private land.Gary Houston, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Read Wynyard history for the district and Table Cape for a present-day public visit.