In 1860 the Wurundjeri Elder, Wonga, petitioned the Victorian Parliament for a piece of land in his people’s own country where he could establish a settlement. The land later named Coranderrk was granted. When Wonga died in 1875 his nephew William Barak, known by settlers as ‘King William, last chief of the Yarra Yarra tribe’, became the leader, the Ngurungaeta. William Barak believed strongly in justice for his people, and time and again made the arduous walk to Melbourne to petition to Parliament and to Queen Victoria for his people. ‘Freedom for our lifetime’, he said. The community at Coranderrk welcomed Aboriginal people displaced from other parts of Victoria; they established an economically self-sufficient settlement by growing and marketing hops. Barak negotiated with the Victorian Government officials as they made promises and broke promises. They finally promised to export the whole of a hop harvest of one year. The people worked around the clock to fill the contract; the Government pocketed the proceeds. The community never recovered. Barak died in 1903— a broken-hearted man. (from http://www.sosj.org.au/_uploads/_cknw/files/Corenderrk.pdf) Artist William Barak is buried in this cemetery.Photographs of graves in grass and bushland. It is the Corenderrk Cemetery, and is associated with the former Corenderrk Aboriginal Reserve.corenderrk, wurundjeri, barak, aborigines, aboriginal, cemetery, grave, barak, jemima dunolly

A description of the invasion of Djadja Wurrung land in Central Victoria which began in the mid 1830s.maps, b&w illustrations, b&w photographsdjadja wurrung, dja dja wurrung, dja dja wrung aboriginal association, beembarmin, victorian pastoral leases, franklinford, fernihurst, edward parker, caroline morgan, thomas dunolly, cummeragunja, racial conflict, racism, victorian social history

David Gordon Collection. A Codd-neck bottle is a type of bottle used for carbonated drinks. Hiram Codd, an English engineer invented a successful process that he patented as “Codd’s patented globe stopper bottle” in 1872. This type of bottle has a closing design in which a glass marble is held against a rubber seal, which sits within a recess in the lip. The Codd-neck bottle was designed and manufactured with thick glass to withstand internal pressure, and a chamber to enclose a marble and a rubber washer in the neck. The bottles are filled upside down, and pressure of the gas in the bottle forced the marble against the washer, sealing in the carbonation. The bottle is pinched into a special shape to provide a chamber into which the marble is pushed to open the bottle. This prevents the marble from blocking the neck as the drink is poured. The bottles were regularly produced for many decades, but gradually declined in usage. Since children smashed the bottles to retrieve the marbles, vintage bottles are relatively scarce and have become collector items, particularly in the UK. William Whittaker's son Joseph Whittaker operated a cordial factory at Tarnagulla for many years. It was located at the southern end of Commercial Road, and was the last business premises on the eastern side of the road. Joseph Whittaker was a leading citizen at Tarnagulla for many years, and was a leading supporter of sporting activities including cricket and rifle clubs, as well as a strong patron of the fire brigade. He was known by some as Ginger Beer Joe.