Frank Gardiner

Who was Frank Gardiner?

Frank Gardiner was a noted Australian bushranger of the 19th century. He was born in Scotland in 1830, and migrated to Australia as a child with his parents in 1834. Other sources state that he was born in 1830 at Boro Creek, near Goulburn, New South Wales. His real name was Francis Christie, though he often used one of several other aliases including Gardiner, Clarke or Christie. He supposedly took the name Gardiner after a man who lived for some years with his family and who had taught him how to ride and break in horses. Although almost all legend states that his real name is Francis Christie, he signed his name 'Frank Gardiner'. He used the surname Gardiner while in America and he remains one of the more enigmatic Australian bushrangers.