The Aboriginal Reserve near Mount Franklin

Warning for Aboriginals: this article may contain images and views of deceased people.

There was an Aboriginal reserve around Mount Franklin in the 19^th century. Between 1852 and 1864 two Aboriginal families farmed on a 21 acres near Mount Franklin.The families farmed a section of the Aboriginal reserve, formally the Loddon Protectorate established by Edward Stone Parker in 1841.

This was an organised system that helped displaced native people from tribes of the area to run their own farm under Parker, who provided services of magistrate and guardian. Parker gave employment to the native people in pastoral and agricultural care, as he understood that they had lost their traditional way of life and thus he encouraged that they adopt a European lifestyle.

These Aborigines belonged to the local Jaara or Jajowurrung tribe, whose numbers had diminshed greatly since the 1830s. Parker’s intentions were as good as any respectful albeit ignorant colonial settler, however there is little record of the feelings of the Aborigines – one reported that he did not like Europeans or their customs, yet had no choice but to adopt that lifestyle.

Farm of Aboriginals near Mount Franklin

Eventually as the people of these tribes disappeared - dying of diseases or murdered, the reserve was closed and the two families amoung others were moved to an area near Healesville.

It appeared E.S Parker made a great attempt at saving the native people by civilising them in this area, but that is very difficult to do when the native people lived so differently to the White settlers, who just boast about their civilised ways. There has been verbal debate and rumours about the possibility of a more brutal destruction of the native people in the area of Mount Franklin and Franklinford, but I personally am not sure of such documented fact, nor knowledgeable of any citations regarding that kind of information.

Other details of this history are mentioned in the October 16th 2010 blog post 'A History of Mount Franklin'
http://mountfranklinannualpagangathering.blogspot.com/2010/10/history-of-mt-franklin.html

Today, we respect the land and their tribes, and thank them for allowing our presence on such sacred ground. The Celtic Heritage Society have always been respectful of elders, tribe members and their ancestors when conducting their own ancestral and traditional ceremonies upon this land. Both the ethnical peoples ancestral ceremonies are not so different when you look deeper into them…

References:

Reilly, Dianne. & Jennifer Carew, ‘Sun Pictures of Victoria: The Fauchery-Daintree Collection – 1858.’ Currey O’Neil Ross – The Library Council of Victoria, 1983