'Captain William Kinghorne navigated some of the most treacherous waters in the world. His life encompassed the Napoleonic Wars, smuggling in the North Sea, the brutal penal settlements of Macquarie Harbour and Port Arthur, the atrocities committed against the Aboriginal people of Tasmania, and the whaling industry of Jervis Bay. Turning his back on the sea, William ended his life as a pastoralist in the Goulburn district. His is a story of high adventure and achievement in an Australia that few would now recognize or acknowledge.' (Publication summary)