This is an opportunity to look back, acknowledge events and move forward together as Australians, united though the country on which we all live and a better understanding of our nations history. The Warrigal Creek Massacre: True Story or Apocryphal? Among the most shocking is the Jack Smith massacre (Warrigal Creek, Victoria) in 1843, where about 150-170 Brataualang people were killed over 5 days in retaliation for the killing of one single personRonald Macalister, the nephew of a local squatter. To discount Macalisters involvement, Gardner states there is no proof he was in Gippsland before 1848. Click here to subscribe. This account is much closer in time to what may have happened at Warrigal Creek but Bell did not reveal how he knew of the massacres. We were hearing the stories all the time, especially when we were near the places or going past somewhere, my mum would always say, Over that way. Shed point the finger and say, Dont go that way. The Warrigal Creek Massacre - the documentary There have now been two packed-out screenings of this documentary at Stratford. trailer They travelled with Edward Hobson, who was attempting to find an overland route to Gippsland. Power your marketing strategy with perfectly branded videos to drive better ROI. Searching for information on frontier conflict in old newspapers (film or hard copy) was the proverbial "needle in a haystack" task - time consuming and exhausting with few . Messrs. Pearson and Cunninghame have been the latest sufferers by those cannibals; it is not only the stock they kill we feel the loss of, but running the remainder off their runs, and the expense the proprietors are put to in collecting their cattle, and procuring guns and ammunition for everyone engaged in their employment.[22]. The themes in this page may cause distress. At a quiet bend on a beautiful creek they committed one of the worst acts of indiscriminate killing in the Australian colonies. The other forty-six convicts were employed on the squatting runs. 91 0 obj <> endobj It was well-acknowledged and put on the register of the national estate around the time., The house was built 20 years after the massacre and stands just 20 metres from the site. The next day, while on horseback, he was speared through the neck from behind. endobj The Author at Warrigal Creek 2016. Shepherds worked in pairs, armed, as if in an enemys country, to resist them; and it was 1843 that ended by wholesale destruction, the massacres at Warrigal Creek and Bundalaguah Swamp, where only one aboriginal was left to tell the story of how they died and the history of his race.[61]. 0000116300 00000 n 0000016727 00000 n Nonetheless, it demonstrates that the early settlement of Gippsland was marked by violence involving the Kurnai, the settlers and convicts. The area of Nuntin is on the western side of the Avon and was shown in a survey map of 1857. 0000001456 00000 n One thing is clear from his work: the Kurnai men were warriors. McMillans employer, Captain Lachlan Macalister, described the squatters as legally authorised occupiers of Crown lands. There exists little to no official documentation of the Warrigal Creek Massacre. Because to move forward we must acknowledge our past. Convicts were present in the early years of settlement in Gippsland in two very different ways: first, as the slave labour of the squatters, and second, as escapees congregated around Alberton. <>/ExtGState<>/XObject<>/ProcSet[/PDF/Text/ImageB/ImageC/ImageI] >>/MediaBox[ 0 0 595.4 841.8] /Contents 4 0 R/Group<>/Tabs/S/StructParents 0>> [34] How left is open to interpretation given that his third book, Our Murdering Founding Father (a diatribe against McMillan), begins with the property is theft quote from the nineteenth-century anarchist Pierre-Joseph Proudhon. [6], In contrast, there is an implicit assumption in Gardners work that the Kurnai were passive victims of European violence, but this does not do them justice. 0000021061 00000 n 0000001936 00000 n [40] Otherwise, he has no involvement in the story. Host virtual events and webinars to increase engagement and generate leads. Truth-telling about the wrongs of the past is necessary for reconciliation. According to Gardner, the Warrigal Creek massacre was revenge for his murder. Word of the murder was sent to Lachlan Macalister. As fast as they put their heads up for breath, they were shot.. The creek is on a farm 40 kilometres south of Sale, and 200 kilometres east of Melbourne, in the South Gippsland area of Victoria, Australia. [45] Australasian 15 September 1923 p. 55; 31 January 1925; Glen Innes Examiner 31 August 1911 p. 6; Smiths Weekly 12 April 1919, p. 15, [47] Gardner (1990) Our Murdering Founding Father, Ngarak Press, Ensay, p. 40, [51] Stephens, Margeurita, transcribed from the journal of William Thomas; cited on Peter Crowleys website Snow on the Jeeralangs, [52]Adams, John (1990) From These Beginnings, Alberton Shire Council, Yarram, p. 21, [54] Tyers, Charles 1859 Submission to the Select Committee on Aborigines, Government Printer, Melbourne, p.77, [56] Gippsland Times 24 June 2020 (on-line edition), [57] Dunderdale, George (1898) The Book of the Bush, Ward Locke, London, pp.214- 215, [60] County Lands in the Parishes of Bundalaguah and Nuntin, 1857, W T Dawson, District Surveyor, on-line copy, NLA. The Warrigal Creek Massacre event will include: Smoking Ceremony and Welcome to Country Refreshments Filmscreening Panel-led discussion Date: Thursday 11 July 2019 Time: 6.30pm . [48] Thomas (right) recorded a conversation with a man named Hatcher who Gardner believes was the brother-in-law of a Gippsland squatter named Buntine. Presumably he had reasons for both, but he did not say why and he did not reveal the source of his information. Hoddinott said that more than 100 Aboriginal people were killed on that day. In the revised edition of Gippsland Massacres, Gardner reinvented the account, claiming the bones were carried away from the [Warrigal] Creek by the cartload. Balderstone and Irving hope that one day Australia fully recognises the extent of the massacres through a truth and reconciliation commission. Gardner regards tribal warfare as a myth.[18]. Gardner claimsincorrectlythat Thomas was aware of the circumstances of the Warrigal Creek massacre, as he had recorded the details of it on two separate occasions. The creek is on a farm 40 kilometres (25mi) south of Sale, and 200 kilometres (120mi) east of Melbourne, in the South Gippsland area of Victoria, Australia. Around 60 Indigenous Australians were killed, and many more were wounded. Establishing the factual basis of this will require in-depth research to uncover any written evidence before Bells account from 1874, as well as archaeological evidence at locations such as Bruthen Creek and Bundalaguah Swamp. [33] His work was cited widely in a motion to remove monuments to McMillan put before the Wellington Shire Council in June 2020. If you would like to participate, visit the project page. 12/02/2019. Gardner omitted a part of the quote that indicates Hatcher travelled to Gippsland with a man named Bennett. [23] Inwards correspondence Tyers to La Trobe 44/1367 p.5 PROV, [24] Port Phillip Gazette 21 May 1842, p.3, [25] Tyers to La Trobe Inwards Correspondence 45/324 PROV, [27] Tyers to La Trobe Inwards Correspondence 46/219 PROV, [28] Tyers to La Trobe Inwards Correspondence 44/2112, PROV; Port Phillip Patriot 12 August 1839, p.4, [29] Tyers to La Trobe Inwards Correspondence 44/1367, p.4, PROV, [30] Port Phillip Patriot 12 August 1839, p.4, [31] Gardner, P. D. (1994) Through Foreign Eyes, Ngarak Press, Ensay, p.45, [32]Gardner (1993) p.58; (1990) Our Murdering Founding Father, 2nd Edition, Ngarak Press, p.28, [33] The Guardian 6 March 2019; 8 March 2019; Gippsland Times 16 June 2020, [34] Gardner (1993) pp 6-7; (2015) Some Random Notes on Massacres 2000-2015 (on-line essay). Gardner claims it is a secondary source but it is, at best, folk history that he has embroidered with his own fiction about McMillan. Gunaikurnai people have visited the land for years to pay their respects, giving Balderstone some understanding of the pain and intergenerational trauma they still experience. The attack on the Brataualung people camped at Warrigal Creek was one of several incidents resulting in loss of life among the Gunai Kurnai people. Frustrated with the hidden history of the massacre, the makers of this 50-minute documentary sought oral histories and combed through archival works to capture and relay the truth of Australias violent past. Gardners evidence for Angus McMillans involvement in the Warrigal Creek massacre consists of a story written for The Gap school magazine in 1925 by William Hoddinott under the pseudonym of Gippslander. 0000023940 00000 n [citation needed] The group of Gaelic-speaking Scotsmen was known as the "Highland Brigade". In other words, by coincidence, Robinson and Hatcher arrived in Gippsland at exactly the same time. << /Length 17 0 R /Type /XObject /Subtype /Image /Width 293 /Height 146 /Interpolate 0000117691 00000 n share events with your friends and make the most out of every experience. Use your same username and password to log in and you'll be 0000024533 00000 n Establishing this will entail the evaluation of all historical themes and not rejecting or ignoring evidence because it does not fit a preconceived narrative. >> 27 May - 3 June. Launch date: Wednesday 4 AprilStratford Courthouse TheatreFree entry but bookings essentialRegister via Eventbrite http://bit.ly/2sTmWsCAbout the filmWhen An. The Latrobe Catchment Landcare Network is hosting a screening of the Warrigal Creek Massacre. Some basic research puts Hatchers account into context. A Scottish colonist, called Angus McMillan, led a group of about 20 settlers who . Gunaikurnai people continue to visit the land to pay their respects. On the 13th ultimo, Mr. Ronald McAlister was removing his sheep station about two miles from the settlement, when he was attacked by the blacks and murdered; his body was found the following day by a native in his employ. new domain, Events.com. Bells account and the report of the massacre involving the Native Police in April 1845 can be found by simple searches on Trove. Every day I look over and make sure things look peaceful there.. MAR It beggars belief that it was accepted as a completely reliable historical source. 0000015443 00000 n Comment * document.getElementById("comment").setAttribute( "id", "a77bf3dc11d263ed9065ff8247406b97" );document.getElementById("bc64d4fe72").setAttribute( "id", "comment" ); Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Its part of our life and its not that I dont stop and think about it. An excellent and detailed correction of Gardner. In Through Foreign Eyes, Gardner quoted the journal of William Thomas, the Assistant Protector of Aborigines. Runaways from the settlers, and others have located themselves in some vacated huts on the Tara River, rendering it dangerous for passengers to approach this neighbourhood Your Excellency cannot for the sake of humanity, good government, well-being, and the safety of this district, much longer withhold from us the protection of those laws which we have a right to demand at your Excellencys hands [21]. Like Dunderdale and Thomas, he did not mention a mythical Highland Brigade and he was clearly not constrained by Gardners imaginary secrecy. In his first notes [in the 1970s], he talks about the massacre and, from the beginning of my time here, no one ever kept a blanket over the story. Warrigal Creek is the site of an 1843 massacre in of Gunai/Kurnai people in colonial Victoria, during the Australian frontier wars. <> [14], Conflict with the Kurnai was not restricted to the Europeans. In 1845, Tyers reported on the Aborigines, stating: In the early part of 1843as I have been informed, some of the Corner Inlet tribe were occasionally employed by the few Settlers at Port Albert in carrying fire wood and in other light work for which they generally received payment in flour & cbut since the unprovoked murder of Mr Ronald Macalister by them at Port Albert, about that time, they have not been seen in the neighbourhood. In July 1844 he wrote, I regret however to observe that the depredations of the Aborigines continue and that the small police force at my disposal is inadequate to put a stop to them. He went on to describe how the natives have been very troublesome, killing 90 head of cattle belonging to Mr Sparks, at various times, and many belonging to Mr Jones. Captain Charles Tyers RN arrived in Gippsland in January 1844 as the Commissioner for Crown Lands. While we are not personally responsible we continue to live different experiences from these events; some of privilege, some of disadvantage, some unknowing. News; Warrigal Creek doco at the Memo. Gardners cover-up conspiracy theory thus rests on an obvious misrepresentation of Hatchers account. 0000012931 00000 n x[Ys~W`R.$7nN$QI.%>pA>\83FOT]K!+qq{|$E hj]Qw >|nQ)jn'L-.~>>ze)/[B_=|?b1R2Kz~&>,g0cppJBw'YzDh/sZOfyfALsn/P%v=3jeVy~;>H"Oj4**@EBxT14:=l3\Es`eeJZT%L}nz`^Kgxh |[jXaxqGw"0'JH-i`L>_n#&,6IvGr:hu'j^xsFo}\vfuklR4f/eK-fig;)pE?itkoe~x-gd}Y~N0f=)` s[/wE\|(u2|Jvp:n [11] The violent response from the Kurnai was the same as that meted out to their tribal enemies when defending their territory. I knew two blacks, who though wounded came out of the hole alive. stream In July 1843, up to 150 Gunaikurnai people were killed near the banks of what is now known as Warrigal Creek. Massacre [ edit] It may be student work out of Swinburne. He was joined by detachments of the Border and Native Police. { L{ c$Nb`6`4` ` DwG'g5A$Y&e&i 64*6Cs!k >/Filter/FlateDecode/Index[7 84]/Length 22/Size 91/Type/XRef/W[1 1 1]>>stream Could you help us please? In my research for Bitter Harvest, I could find no reference, in original sources, to The Highland Brigade, established, according to the Gardner version of history, to seek out and exterminate blacks. If a historical narrative is to be used as the basis for debate or action in the public sphere, it should be grounded in non-partisan, objective research and analysis. stream However, he has not included a much earlier reference to the massacre. The story was written anonymously for a magazine for primary school children eighty-two years after the incident described, without attribution, and by someone who was not there. To date, there is nothing to suggest that it will include Angus McMillan leading the Charge of the Highland Brigade. Gardner concludes that McMillan's group initially killed two family groups at Warrigal Creek waterhole and then a few days later killed another 60 people at the mouth of Warrigal Creek, then killing three other groups at Freshwater Creek, Gammon Creek, and Red Hill. In other parts of the District, prior to my arrival, they had occasionally come into collision with the Settlersthe consequence of which was the murder of four shepherdsand as far as I can learn without any provocationthey have also committed, and are still committing, many depredations on the stock of the Settlerswhich from the nature of the country, and the known fact of their carrying on their depredations at night, it is difficult to prevent. Facebook. I welcome you all to (insert place name). I learned a lot I had not previously known, and am still thinking about. GLaWAC has been given permission to screen the Warrigal Creek Massacre film at our office at Forestec. I sometimes feel scared that there seems to be such an ugly resistance to understanding our past, she says. This article has been rated as Low-importance on the . They murdered, according to Gippslander, 150 at Warrigal Creek, which would make it one of the largest known massacres of Aborigines in Australian history.[36]. Emotional articles in the Guardian in 2019 parroted the denunciation of McMillan, as did the Gippsland Times in June 2020. %PDF-1.5 4 0 obj The blacks were found encamped near a waterhole at Gammon Creek, and those who were shot were thrown into it, to the number, it was said, of about sixty, men, women, and children; but this was probably an exaggeration.[57]. 2020, Cnr. 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