Erwin Feeken was born in Germany in 1930 and migrated with his wife Gerda to Australia in 1954. Soon after he joined various organisations in his field as survey- or cartographic draftsman and later, as cartographer. This brought him, with his family, to Hobart, Darwin, Canberra, Grafton and finally back to Canberra. At the Australian National University, where he was cartographer in the Geography Department he happened to come upon the original journals of explorer Sir Thomas Mitchell. This discovery became a life-long passion in Australian Exploration for Mr Feeken and his wife, culminating in the publication of The Discovery and Exploration of Australia in 1970. Associated travels did not end then but continued to this day.