Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
The desire to bring the word of God to the
natives of Tierra del Fuego brought a group of
Anglican missionaries led by Alan Gardiner.
They set up camp on Picton Island in December
1850. Indians stole much of their food while
storms destroyed the rest, and this first group
starved to death. Later attempts were also
largely unsuccessful. Ironically, one group was
ambushed and killed by a mob allegedly led by
Jemmy Button.
Undeterred, a group of missionaries settled on
Keppel Island (Las Malvinas/The Falklands)
and tried to reach out to the Yahgans. Among
the group was a young man named Thomas
Bridges who used his time to learn the Yahgan
language. He and his wife set up a mission on
the site of Ushuaia in 1869, compiled a Yahgan
dictionary and raised a family whose descen-
dants still live on Tierra del Fuego. It was
Bridges' son Lucas who wrote the definitive
story of early life on Tierra del Fuego,
The
Uttermost Part of the Earth.
Bridges' descen-
dants live on
Estancia
Haberton,
which you can
visit.
Most islands are
uninhabited but
Navarino
Island (Chile),
south of
Ushuaia across
the Beagle
Channel, is
inhabited.
A conflict between Chilean and Argentinean
interests in Tierra del Fuego and the islands
nearby led to a war of words and almost of bul-
lets. The boundaries were settled in 1984.
Tierra del Fuego, with its beautiful lakes, glacier-
capped mountains and strangely diverse flora
and fauna, is one of the last natural frontiers.
