Physical description

Printed book. Softcover. 348 pages, with illustrations.
Citation: My country all gone the white men have stolen it" : the invasion of Wadawurrung Country 1800-1870 by Fred Cahir. Published by Australian History Matters, Ballarat, Vic., 2019.
BMDHS Location: AR/SU4

Publication type

non-fiction

Summary

Description from publication blurb
The Wadawurrung are the Aboriginal people whose Country includes the cities now known as Ballarat and Geelong. Fred Cahir examines the contact history in the period 1800 – 1870 of the Wadawurrung and the ngamadjidj (generally translated as white stranger belonging to the sea). Divided into chronological and thematic sections, the book chronicles three waves of invasion: the early invasion period incorporating trespassers predominately from the sea, the sheepherders or squatters who followed in their wake and usurped the Wadawurrung of all their Country for sheep runs, and the third wave of invadors – the gold seekers. This historical study is transformative as it presents a compelling argument of how the Wadawurrung were active agents of change and sought cultural enrichment in the midst of the frontier war on the Country."

Significant sections of this book look at the interactions between the Wadawurrung people in locations within the Bacchus Marsh district. The private diary and published works of prominent pastoralist Charles Griffith of Glenmore Station are among the records used to examine this history.