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River Expedition

Silent 1930s black & white amateur film of a European party travelling by riverboat to view the Murchison Falls on the White Nile in Uganda.

7 mins Silent

Overview

Although partly damaged, this film is an early record of European travellers – as tourists not expedition members – being guided to the site of the Murchison Falls, also known as the Kabarenga Falls by African guides to witness the power of the Nile as it explodes through the narrow gaps to cascade into a gentle river, rich with wildlife including hippos and crocodiles.

The film documents the voyage up-river, disembarking, walking towards the falls, named after a former President of the Royal Geographical Society, Sir Roderick Murchison, by Victorian explorers Sir Samuel and Lady Florence Baker who were the first Europeans to locate the falls in 1863 as they sought to discover Albert Nyanza, Lake Albert. The falls became popular in the early twentieth century with wealthy British travellers following the visit in 1907 by Sir Winston Churchill. Today, the area is included in the Murchison Falls National Park.

Country

Great Britain

Language

No Dialogue with English subtitles

Subjects

Expeditions

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