In 1853, Trooper John Goldman shot his superior Corporal William Harvey in his tent at Buningyong following an altercation with a local shopkeeper, Edward Adams, over the ownership of some boxes. Harvey died 24 hours later and Goldman disappeared for 9 months before being arrested.

At his trial before Judge Redmond Barry, Goldman was convicted of wilful murder and was sentenced to death.

It was to be the first public execution in the town of Geelong. But many people were uneasy with the sentence and appealed to Governor La Trobe which were denied.

The day before the scheduled execution, a local Cobb and Co man, Richard Ilidge, rode for Goldmans life with a last ditch appeal to the Governor. He arrived back with just 10 minutes to spare.

Listen to the latest episode to see where Goldmans life went after his execution was commuted.