It's a popular myth that Blaxland, Wentworth, Lawson and Huxtable were explorers. In fact they were just real estate agents who got lost in the bush and had to be rescued.
As for Ludwig Leichhardt, he was just crewing on the Bismarck and jumped ship. They got him back, though. But not before he named everything he could. Much of it misspelled because he was an illiterate seaman with a big ego, who wanted to name everything after himself. The German government and Kaiser Wilhelm were deeply embarrassed, and tried to smother what they could, but some of it struggled through. Hence, Leichhardt the suburb, along with many gorges, many mountains, rivers, lakes and deserts.
Another explorer with an ego problem was Macquarie. This wealthy Scottish whisky distiller, sailing around in his steam yacht, the Chivas Regal, named much of Australia after himself and unfortunately much of it was recorded. Macquarie named buildings, flats, fields, towns, lakes, ships, streets. In fact everything he came across. The only time he allowed the focus to stray from himself, was the occasion he allowed his wife, Lady Wagga, to name a New South Wales town twice after herself.
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