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History
Historical
Information  Timeline
The Tjulyuru Cultural and Civic Centre
lies in the Ngaanyatjarra region centred around Warburton. This
area spans 159,948 square kilometres and has a population of roughly
2,000 Aboriginal inhabitants.
Warburton is situated approximately 1500
km from Perth by road, travelling via Kalgoorlie, Leonora and Laverton
rather than as the crow flies. It is a desert area between the Gibson
desert to the northwest and the Great Victoria Desert to the southeast.
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The present settlement
is situated in the valley between the Warburton and Brown Ranges
approximately 8km from the base of the Warburton Range. In earlier
times several waterholes in the bed of the Elder Creek, which
flows down through the ranges after heavy rain, enabled groups
of Aboriginals to meet there on special occasions. |
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This fact was observed
by William Wade of the United Aboriginal Mission, when he
and his companion made an exploratory journey by camel from
Mt Margaret near Laverton in 1933. Accordingly, it was
decided to establish a mission station there and Wade and
his wife and children returned the following year to do this.
The first site of the mission was at a location known as the
'Old Well' on the western bank of the Elder Creek near the
Mirlirrtjarra waterhole, which is about 5km from the present
townsite. This area was subject to flooding, so the next year
they moved to the present site. |
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It was
not long before the missionaries took certain orphans into their
care and gradually other parents also left their children in the
care of the missionaries. In the early days trading was established
with Aborigines bringing game to exchange for tea and sugar and
at the same time visit their children. So it was that a great
number of children had the opportunity to attend the school run
by the missionaries until the Education Department took over the
responsibility. |
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more people came to visit the mission periodically and then to
reside there permanently. In 1961 the Aboriginal parents decided
to care for their children in their homes and the mission dormitories
were closed. The children continued to attend school. By the mid
1960's the effects of the long drought and the clearing of the
Woomera rocket range for the firing of the Blue-Streak rocket
had brought about 400-500 Aborigines to reside at Warburton.
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The burden imposed by this large population congregated in one small area began to be relieved when the Docker River settlement in the Peterman Ranges was opened in 1968.
In 1973 an Aboriginal Council was formed and incorporated at Warburton
and the Warburton community took over the administration from
the United Aborigines Mission. Many people returned to Warburton
to investigate the rumours of self-determination, employment opportunities
and housing. |
At the same time more
and more of those whose home country was not in the immediate
Warburton area began to consider the possibility of living in
their home areas and by 1975 there were 'outstation groups' (or
homeland communities) established at Mantamaru (Jameson), Papulankutja
(Blackstone), Irrunytju (Wingellina) and Warakurna (Giles).
By the late 1980's these had become substantial communities, three smaller communities Tjirrkarli and Tjukurla also opened during this period.
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A special thanks to Ms Amee Glass for
allowing the use of historical text from her book "Into Another World"
A glimpse of the Culture of the Ngaanyatjarra People of Central Australia.
All historical pictures were used with
permission from the Ngaanyatjarra Council and are Copyright
Ngaanyatjarra Council.
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