# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Jane Morrison - Brief Biography
Not one to blow my own trumpet, and preferring to work quietly in the background like a lot of other Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal friends and relations whose contributions to the Aboriginal rights movement go largely unrecognised, earlier versions of this website did not provide enough information about who I, the author, am.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What were the Australian Wars and why is history not acknowledged? | Australia Explained

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Protection and segregation (1890s to the 1950s)

Indigenous survivors of frontier conflict were moved onto reserves or missions. From the end of the nineteenth century, various State and Territory laws were put in place to control relations between Aboriginal people and other Australians. Under these laws, protectors, protection boards and native affairs departments segregated and controlled a large part of the Aboriginal population. It has been estimated that the Aboriginal population during the 1920s had fallen to only about 60,000 from perhaps 300,000 or even one million people in 1788
Face the facts page 45

In June 1883 the Aborigines Protection Board was established. The Board, consisting of five men, controlled the lives of the 9000 or so 'full-blood' and 'part- Aboriginal' people who lived in New
South Wales. More reserves or stations were set up - by 1900 there were 133 of them. Maloga and Warangesda were taken over by the Board, and the people of Maloga subsequently moved to Cummera gunja. Missionaries were allowed to live on the reserves.

In 1909 the New South Wales Aborigines Protection Act was passed. This was to be the main legislation
governing the lives of Aboriginal people for the next 60 or so years, although it was amended many times according to changing government policies. The Act provided for all reserves and stations and
all buildings to be vested in the Board. The Board had the power to move Aboriginal people out of towns; to set up managers, local committees and local guardians (police) for the reserves; to control reserves; to prevent liquor being sold to Aboriginals; and to stop whites from associating with Aboriginals or entering the reserves.

Amendments to the Act in 1915 and 1918 allowed the Board to remove children from their parents for training, and to force 'half-castes' to leave the reserves. Young girls were sent to Cootamundra Girls
Home to train as domestic servants, and the boys to Singleton to train for service on farms. Kinchela Boys Home at Kempsey was established in 1924. The children in these institutions received almost no education and their labour was exploited. The effects on Aboriginal family life were devastating.

From the 1920s the policy became one of enforced assimilation for 'part- Aboriginals' as the Board tried to reduce the number of people on the reserves. In the 1930s people were shifted from one reserve to another, so that some reserves could be closed and the land leased to neighbouring white farmers, as happened at Tibooburra, Angledool and Carowa Tank.

The Aboriginal Welfare Board replaced the Aborigines Protection Board in 1940, but continued, under a 'new policy of assimilation', to close reserves and encourage people to move to town. In 1967
a Joint Committee of the two houses of State Parliament strongly endorsed these policies. The Committee also recommended that in due course all Aboriginal reserves should disappear. Such decisions totally demoralised the people still living on the reserves, who had come to regard them as
homelands. (The subsequent official neglect of these properties largely accounts for the poor conditions suffered by many Aboriginal people now living on former reserves.)

During the 1920s Aboriginal people began to lobby for the abolition of the Aborigines Protection Board in favour of a body with an all-Aboriginal membership. Several organisations were formed and were active
throughout the 1920s, '30s and '40s: the Australian Aborigines Progress Association, the Australian Aborigines League and the Aborigines Progressive Association. These organisations also fought for national citizenship for Aboriginals and full equality with other citizens, Some people also wanted a representative in the Commonwealth Parliament, Those involved in these activities in the 1930s came from all parts of New South Wales and Victoria. Among them were William Cooper (Cummeragunja), Bill Ferguson (Dubbo), Margaret Tucker and Douglas Nicholls (Melbourne), Jack and Selina Patten and Tom Foster (La Perouse), Pearl Gibbs (Brewarrina), Jack Kinchela (Coonabarabran) and Helen Grosvenor
(Redfern).

In 1937, with the l50th anniversary of British settlement looming, Bill Ferguson, inspired by William Cooper, called the founding meeting of the Aborigines Progressive Association and set about
organising a conference in Sydney for 26 January 1938, It was called' A Day of Mourning and Protest', About 1000 Aboriginal men and women attended, Before the meeting a pamphlet' Aborigines claim citizen rights!' was written by Patten and Ferguson. This meeting was the culmination of ten years' action by New South Wales Aboriginals against the policies of the Aborigines Protection Board.

The following week, on 31 January 1938, a deputation of about 20 people presented the Prime Minister, Joseph Lyons, with a proposed national policy for Aboriginals. They wanted Commonwealth control of all Aboriginal matters, with a separate Ministry of Aboriginal Affairs; an administration advised by a Board of six, at least three of whom were to be Aboriginals nominated by the Aborigines Progressive Association; and full citizen status for all Aboriginals and civil equality with white Australians, including equality in education, labour laws, workers compensation, pensions, land ownership and wages. Lyons replied that, under the Constitution, Commonwealth control was not possible.

These protests prompted the State Government to set up the New South Wales Parliamentary Select Committee of 1937 and the Public Service Board investigation of 1938 to look at mis-management and conditions on the reserves. Unfortunately, very little resulted from these investigations.

Aboriginal action continued. In February 1939 people at Cummeragunja went on strike; they left the reserve and camped on the other side of the Murray River in Victoria. Protest meetings were held in the Domain in Sydney. The movement for citizen rights continued into the 1960s. During the 'Freedom Rides' of 1965 students and Aboriginals protested against discrimination in certain New South Wales towns.

Source: Aboriginal Australia Aboriginal People of NSW

Key dates and events

1888 - The term 'White Australia' was first used when published in William Lane's Boomerang paper in Brisbane.

1890 - War is declared by Jandamarra (also known as pigeon) on the white people in the Kimberly, preventing settlement of the region for another six years.

1901 - The Commonwealth of Australia became a self-governing member of the British Empire.
Amongst the new Acts passed was the Pacific Islander Act, allowing the deportation of all Islanders, and the Immigration Restriction Act, which introduced a dictation test for all immigrants.

1903 - This was further enforced with the Naturalisation Act, which excluded people who were non-Europeans from being naturalised.

1905 - The WA Protector of Aborigines became the guardian of all Aboriginal and 'half caste' children under the age of 16. As one travelling Inspector put it:
I would not hesitate for one moment to separate any half caste from its Aboriginal mother, no matter how frantic her grief is at the time. They soon forget their offspring.

1908 - The invalid pension was introduced for all Australians, the maternity allowance in 1912. Both pensions were unavailable to Aboriginal people.

1915 - The Aborigines Protection Board was empowered to remove and apprentice children without a court hearing. Moneys earned by Aboriginal peoples was held by the protector, and was not seen again. This power was enforced until 1940.

1925 - Saw the formation of the Australian Aboriginal Progressive Association NSW. It held that children should stay with their families, and that the families be held sacred and free from interference.

1927 - Aboriginals were banned from Central Perth until 1948.

1928 - The Conniston Massacre (NT) occurred, 31 Aboriginals were killed because one white dingo trapper was killed.

Source: Australian Museum

More Dates

More dates:
Australian Human Rights Commission
The history of the separation Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families

Video Clip G: First Australians Ep6 1929 DougNicholls (1 min 46 sec)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
History: Protection: Working with Indigenous Australians : History:

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Indigenous survivors of frontier conflict were moved onto reserves or missions. From the end of the nineteenth century, various State and Territory laws were put in place to control relations between Aboriginal people and other Australians. Under these laws, protectors, protection boards and native affairs departments segregated and controlled a large part of the Aboriginal population.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
History: Intregration: Working with Indigenous Australians

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Working with Indigenous Australians Website

# data[].attributes.headline
Extract from Australian Constitution 1900

# data[].attributes.subject
Extract from Australian Constitution 1900

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Author: Anita Heiss

Since the European invasion until very recently, government policy relating to Aboriginal people has been designed and implemented by non-Aboriginal people. The common justification for most policies for Aboriginal people was that they were 'for their own good'. There have been policies of protection, assimilation, self-determination and reconciliation. It is now clear that none of these policies have actually made the condition of Australia's Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples any better than it was prior to the invasion.

When the six Australian colonies became a Federation in 1901, white Australia believed that the Aboriginal people were a dying race and the Constitution made only two references to them. Section 127 excluded Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from the census (although heads of cattle were counted) and Section 51 (Part 26) gave power over Aboriginal people to the states rather than to the federal government. This was the situation until the referendum of 1967 when an overwhelming majority of Australians voted to include Aboriginal people in the census of their own country. The referendum finally recognised Aboriginal people as citizens in their own land.

In 1902, women in NSW were granted the right to vote, but this did not apply to Aboriginal women. And when compulsory voting was introduced in NSW in 1929, Aboriginal people were still excluded under the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918. In 1962, the Federal government gave Aboriginal people the optional right to vote. State laws, however, still classified 'natives' as 'wards of the state' and as such they were denied the right to vote in state elections.

In 1881, George Thornton MLC was appointed the first NSW Protector of Aborigines. Under the NSW Aborigines Protection Act 1909, this position was abolished and replaced by the Aborigines Protection Board. This became the NSW Aborigines Welfare Board in 1943. The board administered government policy, dictating where Aboriginal people could live and work, their freedom of movement, their personal finances and their child rearing practices.

The NSW Aborigines Welfare Board controlled Aboriginal lives until the 1960s, pursuing policies that are now acknowledged as having contributed to the destruction of Aboriginal families and society by separating children from their parents. These children became known as 'the stolen generations' and are still searching for their families. They now number between 15,000 and 20,000 in NSW alone. During World War I, around 500 Aboriginal people enlisted in the armed forces. During this time, the state government continued to remove Aboriginal children from their families, including youngsters whose fathers were serving overseas.

The NSW Aborigines Protection Act subsumed previous legislation, including the 1867 law prohibiting alcohol being sold to Aboriginal people. It also provided for Aboriginal people of 'mixed blood' to be issued with 'certificates of exemption', releasing them from the provisions of the Aborigines Protection Act and its regulations. These certificates, commonly known as 'dog tags', came at a price as individuals were forced to relinquish family connections. They were not allowed to visit their own families and were gaoled if caught doing so. Many of those who travelled to Sydney needed an exemption certificate to allow them to work. When they wanted to return home for family business like funerals, they had to get written permission from the manager of the station or mission to do so. The welfare board saw the increase in the number of certificates issued as proof of the success of its assimilation policy.

The board's policy was based on a belief that 'protection' of Aboriginal people would lead to their 'advancement' to the point where they would eventually fit into the white community. Protection and segregation policies were enforced until the 1940s, when they were replaced with policies of assimilation and integration. Features of the administration of the board included the implementation of the assimilation policy, and, from the early 1950s, the movement of Aboriginal people to Aboriginal Stations where they could be prepared for absorption into the general community.

The policy of assimilation meant individual families were persuaded to share the life in the towns with whites. Earlier government policies had relocated Aboriginal people from their homelands to reserves, known as stations or missions. The assimilation policy aimed at breaking up these reserves and 'encouraging' people to give up seasonal and casual work, replacing this with regular work for wages (which remained unequal). The stations were considered as 'stepping-stones to civilisation'.

The Aborigines Welfare Board of NSW consisted of 11 members, and by 1943, two positions were designated for Aboriginal people, one 'full-blood' and one having 'a mixture of Aboriginal blood'. An amendment to the Aborigines Protection Act in 1911 established Kinchela Boys Home and Cootamundra Girls Home for Aboriginal children removed from their families. In these homes, Aboriginal children were taught farm labouring and domestic work, many of them ending up as servants in the houses of wealthy Sydney residents.

While espousing the benefits of assimilation to Aboriginal people, the assimilation policy still denied their basic rights, even in the 1960s. It stopped them from raising their own children, stopped freedom of movement, having access to education, receiving award wages, marrying without permission, eating in restaurants, entering a pub, swimming in a public pool or having the right to vote.

The Aborigines Act of 1969 abolished the NSW Aborigines Welfare Board and Aboriginal children then became wards of the state. The welfare board's functions in thus area were transferred to the Department of Child Welfare and Social Welfare. This later became the Department of Youth and Community Services, which created the NSW Directorate of Aboriginal Welfare. In 1975, the Commonwealth Government took over many of the functions and records of the Directorate of Aboriginal Welfare, which then became the Aboriginal Services Branch. The department's name was changed in 1988 to Family and Community Services and in 1995 to Community Services.

The NSW Land Rights Act 1983 was another important milestone. The dispossession of Aboriginal people from their land is acknowledged in the Act's preamble, which states:

* Land in the State of New South Wales was traditionally owned and occupied by Aborigines:

* Land is of spiritual, social, cultural and economic importance to Aborigines;

* It is fitting to acknowledge the importance which land has for Aborigines and the need for Aborigines of land:

* It is accepted that as a result of past government decisions the amount of land set aside for Aborigines has been progressively reduced without compensation.

A three-tiered system of Aboriginal Land Councils (state, regional and local) was established under this legislation. In 2000, the Metropolitan Local Aboriginal Land Council's offices were located at the 'Day of Mourning' Site in Elizabeth Street but have since moved to Redfern The NSW Aboriginal Land Council's head office is located at Parramatta. There are 120 local Aboriginal land councils in NSW and 13 regional land councils.

The NSW Department of Aboriginal Affairs (DAA) was formed on 4 April 1995 (replacing the former Office of Aboriginal Affairs) and is recognised as the leading advocate and representative voice of Aboriginal affairs at both state and community level. The rhetoric has shifted to one of encouraging partnerships with the Aboriginal community and NSW Government service providers. The functions of DAA are determined by the Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and conform to the directions and requirements of the NSW Government. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, DAA worked in partnership with the Cabinet Office to provide an executive service to the Cabinet Committee on Aboriginal Affairs, which set the direction of government programs. In 2013, Aboriginal Affairs is now an office within the Department of Education and Communities and has 'primary responsibility for providing advice to government on matters effecting Aboriginal people and communities in NSW'.

On a national level, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission (ATSIC) was Australia's national policy making and service delivery agency for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people from 1900 to 2005. ATSIC was an independent Commonwealth authority established under the ATSIC Act passed in November 1989. ATSIC had offices in all States and Territories and advised the Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, while delivering programs to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.

ATSIC was governed by elected regional councils and power over decisions about policy making and funding was held by a Board of Commissioners representing their local communities.

In relation to the past administration of Aboriginal affairs, it should be recognised that Aboriginal people have continuously resisted the imposition of much of this government legislation. The official records reflect this opposition and contain letters written by Aboriginal people seeking to recover their land, to receive the right to vote, to have their children returned, to receive citizenship rights and so on.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Government policy in relation to Aboriginal people - Barani

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Since the European invasion until very recently, government policy relating to Aboriginal people has been designed and implemented by non-Aboriginal people. The common justification for most policies for Aboriginal people was that they were 'for their own good'. There have been policies of protection, assimilation, self-determination and reconciliation.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Legislation and Key Provisions

An Act to prevent the enticing away the Girls of the Aboriginal Race from School or from any Service in which they are employed 1844

An offence to remove Aboriginal girls from school or 'service' without the previous consent of a Protector of Aborigines or the girl's employer. Repealed by Aborigines Act 1905.

Industrial Schools Act 1874

Every child or descendant 'of the aboriginal race' apparently under 21 years of age who voluntarily surrenders himself or herself or is surrendered 'by any parent or apparent guardian and friend' to continue in the custody and care of the manager of the institution, who is the child's lawful guardian to the exclusion of others. Children of any race affected if 'apparently an orphan and without a guardian'. Any person descended from the 'aboriginal' race being a child apparently under the age of 12 years who is not living under the care or guardianship of either father or mother may after careful inquiry be handed over by the Magistrate or guardian to a school or institution for maintaining and teaching descendants of the 'aboriginal' race. This Act ceased to be relevant to Aboriginal children after the passage of the Aborigines Protection Act 1886. Amended by Industrial Schools Amendment Act 1877 - the consent of the child or the signed approval of a magistrate required before a child apprenticed. Repealed by the State Children Act 1907.

Aborigines Protection Act 1886

Established Aborigines Protection Board. Its functions include submitting proposals to the Governor relating to the care custody or education of the children of 'Aboriginals' and exercising a general supervision and care over all matters affecting the interests and welfare of the 'Aboriginals'. Board may appoint honorary local protectors to oversee rationing and medical care of 'Aboriginals' and report on condition of Aboriginal children. Resident Magistrates, acting under instructions of the Board, may apprentice any 'Aboriginal' or 'half-caste' child of a 'suitable age' until the age of 21 years, provided that 'due and reasonable provision is made for [the child's] maintenance, clothing and proper and humane treatment'. 'Aboriginals' may be prohibited from entering or remaining in towns. Repealed by Aborigines Act 1905.

Aborigines Act 1889

Amended the 1886 Act to allow Crown lands to be reserved and set aside 'for the use and benefit of the Aboriginal inhabitants' and vested existing 'Native Reserves' in the Aborigines Protection Board. Repealed by Aborigines Act 1905.

Aborigines Act 1897

Abolished the Aborigines Protection Board and the powers and duties of existing protectors of Aborigines. Created the WA Aborigines Department with similar duties to the former Board as well as to provide for the custody, maintenance and education of the children of Aborigines. The Department given an annual budget of [sterling] 5,000 instead of 1% of annual government revenue as specified in 1889 WA Constitution. (1% was a much larger amount after the discovery of gold boosted government revenue. As this provision was inconsistent with the WA Constitution, an Act of the British Parliament, the Act was actually invalid. The invalidity was realised in 1904 and retrospectively validated in the Aborigines Act 1905.) Repealed by Aborigines Act 1905.

Aborigines Act 1905

Established the position of Chief Protector who was the legal guardian of 'every aboriginal and half-caste child' to the age of 16 years. Regional protectors to be appointed with power to grant permits for employment of Aboriginal males less than 14 years and Aboriginal females. No person to remove any 'aboriginal', any male 'half-caste' under 16, or any female 'half-caste' without the written authority of a protector. Minister for Aboriginal Affairs may remove 'aboriginals' from one reserve or district to another reserve or district. The marriage of an 'aboriginal' woman and a non-Aboriginal man requires the permission of the Chief Protector. Minister may exempt 'aboriginals' from the Act but an exemption could be cancelled at any time. Regulations may be made for 'the care, custody and education of the children of aborigines and half-castes' and 'enabling any aboriginal or half-caste child to be sent to and detained in an aboriginal institution, industrial school or orphanage'. Repealed by Native Welfare Act 1963.

State Children Act 1907

Secretary of State Children Department to have care and control of all State children. Where a court finds that a child is destitute or neglected, or the child is 'uncontrollable' or 'incorrigible', it may order the child to be committed to the care of the department or sent to an institution to be detained until the age of 18. If a child is found guilty of offence the court may order that the child be sent to an industrial school. Reasonable notice of a complaint against a child must be given to his/her parent or guardian. Repealed by Child Welfare Act 1947.

Aborigines Act Amendment Act 1911

Chief Protector made the legal guardian of all illegitimate 'half-caste' children 'to the exclusion of the rights of a mother of an illegitimate half-caste child.' Aboriginal institutions to exercise the same powers as State institutions in respect of State children. Repealed by Native Welfare Act 1963.

State Children Act Amendment Act 1919 [also known as the Child Welfare Act 1919]

In committing any child to an institution the court must have regard to the child's future welfare. The court may direct that a child be detained in one of the institutions scheduled to the Act or in some other institution at which such special training and supervision can be provided as may best meet the needs of any special case. Repealed by Child Welfare Act 1947.

State Children Act Amendment Act 1927

Replaced the term 'State child' with 'ward'. A 'ward' defined as a child who is received into an institution or apprenticed, boarded out or placed out under this Act. Repealed by Child Welfare Act 1947.

Native Administration Act 1936 [Also known as the Aborigines Act Amendment Act 1936]

Changed the title of Chief Protector to Commissioner of Native Affairs. The expansive definition given to 'native' extended the reach of the Commissioner's powers. Commissioner of Native Affairs made the legal guardian of all legitimate and illegitimate 'native' children to the age of 21 'notwithstanding that the child has a parent or other relative living'. Repealed by Native Welfare Act 1963.

Native Administration Amendment Act 1941

Restricted right of Aboriginal people to move from north to south of the State across the 20th parallel of south latitude. Repealed by Native Welfare Act 1963.

Native (Citizenship Rights) Act 1944

To be granted 'citizenship' under this Act, an Aboriginal person had to convince a magistrate that he/she had severed all ties to extended family and friends (parents, siblings and own children excepted), was free from disease, would benefit from holding citizenship and was 'of industrious habits'. Repealed by Native (Citizenship Rights) Act Repeal Act 1971.

Child Welfare Act 1947

The secretary of the department to have the care, management and control of wards. Where a court finds a child to be 'destitute' or 'neglected', it may commit the child to the care of the department; send him/her to an institution; or release him/her on probation. In committing any child to an institution a court is bound to have regard to the future welfare of such child. A child committed to the care of the department may be detained in an institution; boarded out, apprenticed or placed at service with a 'suitable person'; or placed in the custody of a 'suitable person'. No ward to be detained in an institution or to be under the control of the department after attaining the age of 18 except that a period of supervision or detention of any female ward may be extended to 21. Reasonable notice of the complaint must be given to the child's parent or guardian.

Child Welfare Act Amendment Act 1952

Before declaring a child destitute, the court must be satisfied that all available proceedings taken to obtain an order against near relative for contributions.

Native Welfare Act 1954

Commissioner and Department of Native Affairs changed to Commissioner and Department of Native Welfare. The Commissioner remains the legal guardian of 'native' children except where the child has been made a ward under the Child Welfare Act 1947. 'The Commissioner may from time to time direct what person is to have the custody of a native child of whom he is the legal guardian, and his direction shall have effect according to its tenor'. Repealed by Native Welfare Act 1963.

Child Welfare Act Amendment Act 1958

Where it appears to the Minister that a person has placed a child in care of another but maintenance is not being paid, the Minister may commit the child to the care of the department.

Native Welfare Act Amendment Act 1960

'Quadroons' and persons less than 'quadroon blood' excepted from the definition of 'native'. Repealed by Native Welfare Act 1963.

Child Welfare Act Amendment Act 1962

Director of the Child Welfare Department made the guardian of wards. Where it appears to the Minister that a child has been left without a parent or guardian; or the whereabouts of any parent, near relative or guardian of the child is not readily ascertainable, then if the child is not destitute or neglected, the Minister may commit the child to the care of the department.

Native Welfare Act 1963

Commissioner ceased to be the guardian of 'native minors'. Duties of Department of Native Welfare include providing for 'the custody, maintenance and education of the children of natives' and to assist in the 'economic and social assimilation by the community' of 'natives'. Only 'natives' and specified persons to enter or remain on reserves. Regulations may be made for 'the control, care and education of the children of natives'. Repealed by Aboriginal Affairs Planning Authority Act 1972.

Community Welfare Act 1972 [also known as the Community Services Act 1972]

Established the Department of Community Welfare which was an amalgamation of the Child Welfare Department and sections of the Department of Native Welfare.

Child Welfare Amendment Act (No 2) 1976

Replaced the terms 'destitute child' and 'neglected child' with 'child in need of care and protection'. A ward may be placed in a suitable centre or facility, transferred from one centre, facility, training or employment to another, placed in employment with some suitable person, or placed in the care, charge or custody of a suitable person.

Protectors' reports

Aborigines Department: Report for financial year ending 30th June...

Report of the Chief Protector of Aborigines for the year ending 30th June...

Annual Report of the Chief Protector of Aborigines for the year ended 30th June;

Annual Report of the Commissioner of Native Affairs for the year ended 30th June...

Annual Report of the Commissioner of Native Affairs for the year ended 30th June...

Commissions, Committees

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The state and territory government legislation

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Coranderrk 1890 - courtesy of State Library Victoria

Always here, always will be.

​

Coranderrk Aboriginal Station opened in 1863 and became home to Aboriginal people from across Victoria whose lands had been stolen from them.

Coranderrk is located on Wurundjeri land and we, Wandoon Estate Aboriginal Corporation (WEAC) are its custodians and managers. We are Wurundjeri, and our language is Woiwurrung. We are descended from Wonga and Barak. Together with our four neighbouring groups - Boon Wurrung, Dja Dja Wurrung, Taungurung and Wathaurong - we are part of the Kulin Nation.

​

The culture of the First People of Australia is the oldest living culture in the world. No-one knows with certainty how many Aboriginal people were here when our lands were colonised in 1788. The area now known as Victoria supported 36 groups defined by complex lore regarding land, protocols, relationships and language. Each group had a deep and intimate knowledge of their country. The land and the resources it provided was cared for according to lore set down by ancestors. This ensured an inextricable and enduring connection to and respect for country.

​

Our ancestors were the ultimate conservationists, they had an intimate connection to the landscape and understood that their actions affected the world around them. Respecting and working with the environment ensured that sustenance and shelter would be provided for generations to come. We are learning from them and sharing our knowledge through Coranderrk.

​

Click map to enlarge

The approximate territories of the five Kulin clans (shaded) and some of the other Aboriginal nations of Victoria.

FROM: The Coranderrk Inquiry: A window onto the history of colonial dispossession in settler states. http://www.minutesofevidence.com.au/the-coranderrk-story/

The devastation of European colonisation

​

Colonisation:

"The action or process of settling among and establishing control

In 1835 John Batman made a so-called treaty with eight Kulin Ngurungaetas (headmen) to 'acquire' the land around Port Phillip. It is possible that the Ngurungaetas considered the treaty as similar to a tanderrum ceremony; a diplomatic rite of reciprocity and exchange that would have resulted in a relationship of ongoing mutual obligation, while providing the colonisers temporary access to, but not ownership of Kulin country and resources (2). They were accommodating the settlers, not ceding to them.

Instead, the Aboriginal people of Victoria were decimated by colonisation. Thirty short years after Europeans arrived in Victoria, only 2,000 Aboriginal people remained(3). Victoria's white population grew to 100,000 (4) between 1836 and 1851 and grew at a phenomenal rate in the 1850s due to the gold rush. Traditional hunting grounds were destroyed by gold miners and the remaining land taken over by graziers and squatters. Ways of life that had been occurring for tens of thousands of years were destroyed and it became almost impossible to retain and continue traditions passed down from the Elders. Lives continued to be lost through massacres and introduced diseases such as smallpox and influenza, to which Aboriginal people had no immunity to.

​

Aboriginal Missions and Stations

​

Front View of the Coranderrk Aboriginal Station

Pictures Collection, State Library Victoria

In 1858 an Inquiry into the Welfare of Aboriginal People was made, which resulted in the establishment of the Central Board Appointed to Watch Over the Interests of Aborigines. Following the establishment of the Aboriginal Protection Act in 1869, the Board was re-established as the Board for the Protection of Aborigines. The Aboriginal Protection Act gave the Board extensive powers over Victorian Aboriginal people, regulating all aspects of their lives including marriages and where they lived and worked through the establishment of missions and stations. Seven missions and stations were established across Victoria, including Coranderrk Aboriginal Station.

​

In the 1850s Billibellary, Ngurungaeta of the Wurundjeri/Woiwurrung clans, had developed a relationship with William Thomas, Guardian of Aborigines. They exchanged information and Thomas wrote extensively on Aboriginal cultures and beliefs. Following Billibellary's death in 1846, his son Simon Wonga became Ngurungaeta.

In 1861, Wonga brought five Taungurong men to meet with William Thomas to request for "...a block of land in their country where they may sit down, plant corn, potatoes, etc.- and work like white men". (6)

​

Extract from the Parish of Gracedale Plan showing the extent of the Permanent Reservation of Coranderrk. National Archives of Australia

Land was initially set aside near Acheron, however influential and well-connected squatters in the area lobbied to retain

the land. Wonga and the Taungurong people, who had been joined by lay missionaries John and Mary Green and Wurundjeri people from Yering, were moved to land known as Mohican Station. Mohican was cold, inhospitable and unfit for farming. Many people left and it was eventually closed.

​

Photograph by Carl Walter

Pictures Collection

State Library Victoria,

Click the image for more information about Simon Wonga

After a number of false starts, 2,350 acres of land at the confluence of the Yarra River and Coranderrk/Badger Creek was established as Coranderrk Aboriginal Station. This land had been part of 38,000 acres of squatters' leases taken up by the Ryrie brothers, and at the time Coranderrk was established it was part of the 44,000 acre property known 'Yarradale', owned by William Nicholson (Victorian Premier 1859-1860). In 1864, Simon Wonga presented Governor Barkley an address and gifts to send to Queen Victoria (7). The Queen wrote a letter of thanks in return, which led the Coranderrk people to believe that the land had been given to them in perpetuity. However Coranderrk remained under the control of the government, overseen by the Central Board Appointed to Watch Over the Interests of Aborigines.

​

​

Towards Self-sufficiency

John Green, a Scottish lay missionary, was appointed as Coranderrk's first superintendent. He lived at Coranderrk together with his wife Mary and their children. The Greens managed Coranderrk in accordance with the requirements of the Board, but were also respectful and encouraging of the continuation of Aboriginal traditions, language and culture (8).

​

Within ten years, Coranderrk had become a village

and was working towards self-sufficiency.

Homes had been built, as well as a kitchen, laundry, dairy and store. Paddocks were cleared, fenced and planted with crops, an orchard established, and cattle provided milk and meat. An aqueduct fed water from Coranderrk Creek into a reservoir and a sawmill was constructed. The hub of the village was the building originally built as a dormitory for orphaned children and the infirm, but which became the schoolroom, church and meeting place.

​

Hops kilns at Aboriginal Station, Coranderrk.

The people of Coranderrk led a regimented life defined by work, religion and education. They all attended school and church. They produced sufficient food and dairy products for themselves, supplemented with rations. The men hunted for food and skins and went away to earn wages as trackers and sheep shearers. They made cheese and jams as well as baskets, rugs and traditional tools which they sold to visitors and through shops in Melbourne. They made clothing and furniture or purchased them from travelling hawkers. They decorated their houses with feathers, ferns and flowers as well as photos from newspapers and photos of themselves. They played football and cricket and celebrated weddings, birthdays and royal occasions.

​

Coranderrk was well on its way to self-sufficiency and to achieve this, John Green experimented with various crops that would provide additional income. He attempted to grow tobacco, but had more success with hops. By 1874, two kilns for drying hops had been constructed.

​

For a fascinating insight into life and times

at Coranderrk Aboriginal Station

see our history project:

Coranderrk & Healesville: a Shared History.

​

15 posters prepared for WEAC

by Heritage Consultant Nicola Stairmand

with the support of

Yarra Ranges Council.

​

Triumph To Tragedy

​

The hops crops were successful but ultimately led to upheaval at Coranderrk. For years, local squatters who wanted the valuable land on which Coranderrk was located had been campaigning for Coranderrk's closure. The Board began to see the value of a hops crop with a work force they thought they could control and manage. Some Board members disagreed with Green's management of Coranderrk, and sought to undermine him. In the mid 1870s, two major changes occurred; Simon Wonga died and the Board forced Green's resignation.

​

As Wonga had no children, his cousin, William Barak became the next Ngurungaeta. As management became more authoritarian and life harsher the people of Coranderrk began a prolonged campaign for more autonomy and the reinstatement of Green as superintendent. Barak, supported by many others at Coranderrk, began a campaign of non-violent resistance and astute lobbying. They were aided by European sympathisers such as John Green and Anne Bon, a staunch friend of the Coranderrk people and a long-term, proactive advocate for Aboriginal people (9). During this period, the Board proceeded to starve Coranderrk of funds and appointed a succession of highly inappropriate managers who further ran the station into the ground.

Aboriginal Australians, Coranderrk c. 1912.

Pictures Collection, State Library Victoria

Photograph by Carl Walter

Pictures Collection

State Library Victoria,

Click the image for more information about William Barak

Eventually, in 1881 an Inquiry into Conditions at Coranderrk Aboriginal Station was held. Twenty two Coranderrk people gave evidence about the lack of medical attention and warm clothing, the inadequacy of the houses, the enforced labour in the hops fields which left them with no time to produce their own crops or maintain fences and buildings, the lack of food and provisions and the lack of wages to purchase food with. Following the inquiry, conditions improved somewhat, but the vision of a self-sufficient and self-governed life was lost. John Green was not reinstated as superintendent but remained in Healesville and close to the people of Coranderrk.

​

In 1886, the Half Caste Act was introduced meaning that all 'half-caste' people (those with Aboriginal and European ancestry) between the ages of 15 to 35 were removed from Coranderrk (and from all other missions and stations) and expected to assimilate into the broader society. This had an enormous impact on the Coranderrk community, breaking up families, destroying the sense of community, and removing the young, fit men capable of working in the fields and with the cattle. By 1893, implementation of the Half-Caste Act had reduced the number of people at Coranderrk to thirty-one. The Board continued to receive pressure from settlers to sell or lease portions of Coranderrk and from the 1890s, Coranderrk was reduced in size. The Board gradually revoked, sold or leased Coranderrk land to others, including 78 acres to Colin MacKenzie (later Sir) in 1920 for a fauna research center, which is now Healesville Sanctuary.

​

Coranderrk officially closed in 1924 with all but six of the Coranderrk people being removed to Lake Tyers. Only Lankie and Annie Manton, Alfred Davis and his wife, Mrs Dunnolly and Bill Russell were permitted to remain at Coranderrk.

In 1948 the Coranderrk Lands Bill revoked the reservation of Coranderrk's remaining land which was then divided up for solider settlement. No Aboriginal soldiers were eligible for the land.

​

Towards Tomorrow

​

In the 1990s, 200 acres including Coranderrk's only surviving building - the superintendent's residence - was purchased by the Indigenous Lands and Sea Corporation (ILSC). The property is now managed by Wandoon Estate Aboriginal Corporation (WEAC).

Through its early vision to establish a self-sufficient and self-governing way of life and the later campaigns to retain what was built, Coranderrk demonstrates Aboriginal resistance to colonisation and the value of astute political activism, caring for country and developing lasting friendships and partnerships.

For a fascinating insight into life and times

at Coranderrk Aboriginal Station

see our history project:

Coranderrk & Healesville: a Shared History.

​

15 posters prepared for WEAC

by Heritage Consultant Nicola Stairmand

with the support of

Yarra Ranges Council.

​

For more information about our history see:

(1) Oxford English Dictionary

(2) School of Historical & Philosophical Studies, The University of Melbourne, eMelbourne: Aboriginal Melbourne - Batman's Treaties https://www.emelbourne.net.au/biogs/EM00165b.htm

(3) National Museum Australia, Defining Moments: Coranderrk h ttps://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/coranderrk

(4) Dept. Planning (DELWP) Victoria's Historic Population Growth) https://view.officeapps.live.com/op/view.aspx?src=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.planning.vic.gov.au%2F__data%2Fassets%2Fword_doc%2F0027%2F29295%2Faccessible-version-of-Victorias-historic-population-growth.docx

(5) https://www.deadlystory.com/page/culture/history/Creation_of_reserve_system

(6) Byrt, P 2005, 'Simon Wonga, Aboriginal leader', Victorian History Journal, Vol. 76, No. 1 April.

(7) The Argus 25 June 1863, p. 5

(8) excerpt_-_john_green.pdf (minutesofevidence.com.au)

(9) NFAW & University of Melbourne, The Australian Women's Register Bon, Anne Fraser (1838-1936) http://www.womenaustralia.info/biogs/AWE1149b.htm

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Coranderrk 1890 - courtesy of State Library Victoria Always here, always will be. ​ Coranderrk Aboriginal Station opened in 1863 and became home to Aboriginal people from across Victoria whose lands had been stolen from them. Coranderrk is located on Wurundjeri land and we, Wandoon Estate Aboriginal Corporation (WEAC) are its custodians and managers.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Monday 21 February
Grafton: on the border between the Bundjalung and Gumbaynggir people

'We heard a tape prepared by a Mr Miles, from the ABC. It described the conditions of aborigines on the far north coast, really exposed the complexities of the problem and suggested concrete solutions. There were many recordings of aborigines expressing their views. The tape was prepared two years ago but had never been used - it was too hard-hitting for the ABC.' - Ann Curthoys

Tuesday 22 February
Lismore and Cabbage Tree Island: home of the Bundjalung people

'Cabbage Tree Island was very interesting but the reserve was really very much like any other reserve. The co-op shop was OK and so were some of the houses, but others did not have water or electricity. The manager seemed to be a real bastard.' - Ann Curthoys

Wednesday 23 February
Bowraville: home of the Gumbaynggir people

'We'd hardly arrived when this woman, the president or secretary or something of a local Aborigines Welfare Committee, assured us there was no discrimination in Bowraville, and told us all about how wonderful her committee was.

'A group of us went out to the reserve which was about one and a half miles out of town. It was controlled by the Welfare Board but didn't have a manager... The conditions were very bad. The houses were weatherboard, very run down, and hadn't been looked after for 15 years (the houses were 26 years old). They were extremely overcrowded.

'The general picture we got from talking to the people on the reserve was one of extreme lack of job opportunity... The discrimination in the town was absolutely shocking - by far the worst we'd encountered.

'We learnt there was a partition in the picture theatre separating the aborigines from the whites. The aborigines had to buy their tickets separately and could only enter the theatre after the picture had started.

'We learnt of a number of segregated pubs and cafes, and of instances of segregation in the school about 6 years earlier. The two populations were almost completely separate. At first we weren't sure where to start - the town was just so bad. We thought the press could blow up a big story about it, but they refused, obviously instigating us to put on a demonstration.

'We decided to first go up to the manager of the picture theatre, who had previously told Hall that he would let no aborigines in the back of the picture hall, including Charlie Perkins. We went up to see him but he refused to answer the door. The press got a photo of him opening the door slightly and shut it.' - Ann Curthoys

Thursday 24 February
Kempsey: home of the Dhanggati people

'The general picture in Kempsey re discrimination was that everything was fair (a cafe here and a pub there excepted), but the segregation of the swimming pool was the most outstanding thing.

'We took about 10-15 kids with us to the swimming pool. They weren't allowed in and neither were Charlie or Gary. Absolutely blatant.

'Charlie was very emphatic about the success of it because of the publicity, but most of the rest of us thought it an absolute flop because we had failed to force the issue within Kempsey itself. We all realised Kempsey had ignored us, which was precisely what we didn't want. - Ann Curthoys

Friday 25 February
Taree: home of the Birpai people

'Stopped at the Purfleet reserve for half an hour, talking to the people there.' - Ann Curthoys

Saturday 26 February
Sydney: home of the Eora people

'We got all tense etc near the end, because of the press conference. Had tea at Hornsby and then drove on to Uni. When we arrived there was Ted Noffs, a few pressmen, some parents etc. and that's about all. No aborigines or other supporters. We found out later that Noffs had deliberately not told anyone where and when we were arriving.' - Ann Curthoys

Aftermath

Charles Perkins reported the events to a crowd of 200 people at the 1965 Federal Council for the Advancement of Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders (FCAATSI) conference in Canberra. 'The problem is out in the open now', he told them. He called for necessary follow-up work such as the building of relationships with local Aboriginal groups and improved services and access to education for Aboriginal residents in western New South Wales towns. Conference goers heard that one positive result of the students' activities was that the NSW Aborigines Welfare Board publicly announced that it would spend sixty-five thousand pounds on housing in Moree.

Later in the year, Harry Hall, president of the Walgett Aborigines' Progressive Association, appealed to Perkins and other Aboriginal activists to return to Walgett to assist in the fight against the colour bar being applied at the Oasis Hotel. Perkins and others returned to help.

The SAFA engaged in further visits to country towns later in the year but, by the end of 1966, it was finished as a political force.

The 1965 Freedom Ride through New South Wales towns and the publicity it gained, including in overseas newspapers such as the New York Times, illuminated to the world the racial discrimination happening in Australia. While the life of the SAFA was relatively short, the Ride had a lasting impact and served to strengthen the campaigns that followed to bring about greater equality and recognition for Aboriginal people.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Monday 21 February Grafton: on the border between the Bundjalung and Gumbaynggir people 'We heard a tape prepared by a Mr Miles, from the ABC. It described the conditions of aborigines on the far north coast, really exposed the complexities of the problem and suggested concrete solutions.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What is the Northern Territory Intervention?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Intervention was directed at addressing the disproportionate levels of violence in Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory, as well as the systemic disadvantage of Indigenous people, characterised by economic deprivation, unemployment, social marginalisation, inadequate housing and poor health and justice outcomes. It was also a direct response to the Ampe Akelyernemane Meke Mekarle Report (‘Little Children are Sacred Report’) into sexual abuse of Indigenous children. This report was commissioned by the then Northern Territory Chief Minister, Clare Martin, following an interview on the ABC’s Lateline program, in which Alice Springs Senior Crown Prosecutor, Dr Nanette Rogers SC, commented that the violence and sexual abuse of children that was entrenched in Indigenous communities was ‘beyond most people’s comprehension and range of human experience’. The then Commonwealth Minister for Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, Mal Brough, indicated in his second reading speech that “[the NTERA]… and the other bills introduced in the same package are all about the safety and wellbeing of children and are “designed to ensure the protection of Aboriginal children from harm”.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The Northern Territory Intervention in 2007 saw the introduction of a host of draconian controls over Aboriginal lands and communities.