John Atherton.

About John Atherton

John Atherton was an English-born overlander, grazier, and explorer whose pastoral and transport enterprises contributed to the European settlement of Far North Queensland. He established Emerald End station on the Barron River, supplied cattle to northern goldfields, assisted in opening overland routes, and played a prominent role in the development of Mareeba and the Atherton Tableland, both of which bear his name. Around 1890 he ordered the retaliatory killing of Aboriginal people in what became known as the Speewah massacre.