Myths and Mysteries of the - Australian History Mysteries

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Activity page12CSource 7Bathurst was founded at the terminus of Cox’s Road on theorders of Governor Lachlan Macquarie who selected thesite on 7 May 1815. It is the oldest inland town in Australia.The name Bathurst comes from the surname of the BritishColonial Secretary Lord Bathurst. It was intended to be theadministrative centre of the western plains of New SouthWales, where orderly colonial settlement was planned. Thesettlers who crossed the Blue Mountains were harassed byWiradjuri warriors, who killed or wounded stock-keepersand stock and were subjected to retaliatory killings. Inresponse, Governor Brisbane proclaimed martial law on14 August 1824 to end ‘… the Slaughter of Black Womenand Children, and unoffending White Men …’. It remainedin force until 11 December 1824.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bathurst,_New_South_Wales andhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_frontier_wars#New_South_WalesSource 8 Biography of Windradyne (c.1800–1829)Windradyne (c.1800–1829), Aboriginal resistance leader,also known as SATURDAY, was a northern Wiradjuri man ofthe upper Macquarie River region in central-western NewSouth Wales. Emerging as a key protagonist in a periodof Aboriginal-settler conflict later known as the ‘BathurstWars’, in December 1823 ‘Saturday’ was named as aninstigator of clashes between Aborigines and settlers thatculminated in the death of two convict stockmen at KingsPlains. He was arrested and imprisoned at Bathurst for onemonth; it was reported that six men and a severe beatingwith a musket were needed to secure him.After some of the most violent frontier incidents of theperiod, including the killing of seven stockmen in theWyagdon Ranges north of Bathurst and the murder ofAboriginal women and children by settler–vigilantes nearRaineville in May 1824, Governor Brisbane placed thewestern district under martial law on 14 August. Thelocal military was increased to seventy-five troops, andmagistrates were permitted to administer summary justice.Windradyne’s apparent involvement in the murder ofEuropean stockmen resulted in a reward of 200 hectaresbeing offered for his capture. The crisis subsided quickly,although the failure to capture Windradyne delayed therepeal of martial law until 11 December. Two weeks later heand a large number of his people crossed the mountains toParramatta to attend the annual feast there, where he wasformally pardoned by Brisbane.The Sydney Gazette described Saturday as ‘withoutdoubt, the most manly black native we have ever beheld… much stouter and more proportionable limbed’ thanmost Aborigines, with ‘a noble looking countenance, andpiercing eye … calculated to impress the beholder’. Anotherobserver thought him ‘a very fine figure, very muscular… a good model for the figure of Apollo’. His sobrietyand affection for his family and kinsmen were consideredremarkable.Apparently remaining camped in the domain at Parramattafor some time after the 1824 feast, Windradyne thenreturned to Bathurst. He declined to attend GovernorDarling’s feast the following year. In later years, he wasintermittently reported as being involved in raids on maizecrops or in clashes with settlers around Lake George. In1828 an Aboriginal man being led to his execution forthe murder of a stockman at Georges Plains attemptedvainly to pin the crime on the ‘notorious Saturday’.Mortally wounded in a tribal fight on the Macquarie River,Windradyne died a few hours later on 21 March 1829 atBathurst hospital, and was buried at Bathurst.Windradyne had been closely associated with George Suttorand his son William Henry, who were strong advocates onbehalf of Aborigines during and after the period of martiallaw. Both lamented his passing in the Sydney press inApril 1829. One of William Henry Suttor junior’s AustralianStories Retold (1887) placed Windradyne at the scene ofthe Wyagdon attacks in May 1824 and described how hiswarriors had spared the life of the author’s father …In 1954 the Bathurst District Historical Society erected amonument beside a Wiradjuri burial mound at Brucedale,attaching a bronze plaque commemorating ‘The restingplace of Windradene, alias ‘’Saturday”, last chief of theAborigines: first a terror, but later a friend to the settlers….A true patriot’. His death date was erroneously givenas 1835.In the late twentieth century Windradyne was transformedfrom a local figure to a character of national importanceas a resistance hero. A suburb at Bathurst and a studentaccommodation village at Charles Sturt University, WaggaWagga, were named after him. In May 2000 his presumedresting place was put under a voluntary conservation order,the occasion celebrated by Wiradjuri descendants and theSuttor family, continuing a 180-year-old friendship andcreating a potent symbol of reconciliation.David Andrew Roberts, Online Dictionary of Australian Biography, http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/windradyne-132513 Add any information to your summarytable on activity page 3A.4 Write a brief paragraph or do a comicstrip sketch for your own historytextbook (in box 8 of activity page 3C)to explain to readers what the main impactsof the crossing of the Blue Mountains were.The crossing of theBlue Mountains opened thewest to an immediate rush ofsettlement. True or False?42Myths and Mysteries of the Crossing of the Blue Mountains
Activity page 13AHow is the crossing of the Blue Mountains in 1813Investigation 9 represented in the National Museum of Australia?Here is the way the National Museum of Australia presents the story of thecrossing of the Blue Mountains in 1813.1 Read the information on Activity Page 13B and then look at the Museumobjects (Activity Pages 13B and 13C). Then critically evaluate the Museum’srepresentation, using the Site Study Guide below.SITE STUDY GUIDE — Analysing a Museum DisplaySee the film‘virtual visit’from 15:50 to 18:30Aspects to considerThe Museum displayWhat is your first impression of the displaybefore you start studying it in detail?What aspects of the event does the displayshow?Is the historical context clearly explained?Is the significance of this event clearlyexplained?Is a variety of evidence displayed?Are the objects displayed authentic for thatevent or period?Do the objects tell the story effectively?Are the text descriptions clear, accurateand informative?Do the surroundings influence yourimpression of the display?How is the display arranged — when yousee it what stands out in the display?Is there a particular message beingpresented to you in the display?Is the nature of the event clearly identified(e.g. am I told if it is controversial orcontested)?If so, is a variety of viewpoints clearly andfairly put?Do I know where the evidence has comefrom and what sort of evidence it is?Is its purpose to present objects (neutral),or to explain (impartial), or to argue aparticular point of view (partisan)?At the end, do I feel that I really understandthe event and its significance?What is your final judgement about thedisplay? Has it changed from your initialimpression? If so, suggest why.Myths and Mysteries of the Crossing of the Blue Mountains43
Page 1 and 2: Myths and Mysteries of theCrossing
Page 3 and 4: ContentsTeacher’s guide to using
Page 6 and 7: This is done in ways that suit Year
Page 8: Activity page 1Prepare to explore!Y
Page 12: Activity page3CYour textbook accoun
Page 16 and 17: Activity page5BCMark Sherborne, Des
Page 18 and 19: Activity page6AInvestigation 2 How
Page 20 and 21: Activity page6CSo, here you are, it
Page 22 and 23: Activity page7BSource 3 From a comi
Page 24 and 25: Activity page8AInvestigation 4 Who
Page 26 and 27: Activity page8CWilliam Lawson (1774
Page 28 and 29: Activity page8EWere there others in
Page 30 and 31: Activity page9BNEWNES PLATEAUBILPIN
Page 32 and 33: Activity page9DHere is an illustrat
Page 34 and 35: Activity page10BExtractsEmpATHy wor
Page 36 and 37: Activity page11BBased on informatio
Page 38 and 39: Activity page11DCandidate 6: Aborig
Page 40 and 41: Activity page12AInvestigation 8 Wha
Page 44 and 45: Activity page13BBlue Mountains Look
Page 46 and 47: ACTIVITY PAGE13BGregory Blaxland’
Page 48: Country Women’s Association of NS

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