Ironically, the establishment of Armidale in 1839 as the government town was the result of massacres which happened elsewhere in the 1830s. For instance, Major James Nunn of the Mounted Police had led 28 troopers and other men in an attack on an Aborigine camp at Waterloo Creek on January 26, 1838, and slaughtered many of them. Before it was investigated, news came through about an incident on Henry Dangar’s run at Myall Creek, between present day Bingara and Inverell. On June 10, 1838 a group of assigned convicts had rounded up 28 Aborigines and killed them. To mark that anniversary, we’ll look at aspects of Aboriginal history.
Modern histories of places such as Armidale now explore the relationship between the Aborigines (who were the first occupiers of this land), and the settlers (by whom the Aborigines were dispossessed of their land). There are clear differences between the histories which marked our municipal centenary in 1963 and modern works such as John Ferry’s award winning book Colonial Armidale, which was published in 1999. Dr Ferry explored the black-white relationship and noted that, by the 1880s, the local Aborigines had been totally dispossessed and then ceased to appear in Armidale’s ongoing story.
A new phase in the story began in the 1950s and has been written about by several authors, such as Margaret Ann Franklin, Geoffrey Blomfield and Father Bernard Flood. Recently I needed to dig out of my files the superb article Father Flood published in 1979, about Ted Doody (Catholic Bishop of Armidale, 1948-68) and his history-making concern and efforts to help Aborigines. That article is the basis of what follows here.
When Ted Doody arrived as Armidale’s Catholic bishop in 1948, he took considerable interest in the plight of the Aborigines, whom he described as a “crushed, dispossessed and dispirited people”. His interest stemmed from his own compassion and the new directions from Rome concerning the treatment of indigenous people. Government and community attitudes were also changing. Protectionist policies gave way to the push for assimilation.
During the 1950s, the Aboriginal population of Armidale grew because many Aborigines returned to Armidale from missions such as Burnt Bridge at Kempsey or La Perouse in Sydney, where houses had been demolished. Frank and Sarah Archibald were among the families who came to Armidale in 1956. Jim and Ruby Moran visited Armidale at Christmas 1956 and also decided to stay because their children could attend the Catholic school. These people lived in appalling conditions, adjacent to the garbage dump on the city’s outskirts, in shacks constructed from scrap corrugated iron salvaged from the dump, and served by just one tap for their water.
There were two conflicting attitudes to Aborigines in Armidale. In October 1956, the Armidale Association for the Assimilation of Aborigines (AAAA) was formed to help them, especially with suitable housing. On the other hand, some members of the Aboriginal Welfare Board argued that assimilation was not yet possible and wanted the Aborigines removed to reserves where they would be educated, disciplined and trained in preparation for assimilation.
Bishop Doody played a prominent role helping Aborigines with financial and moral support, and also appointed a competent priest to work with the Aborigines. Father Frank Kelly was just the man for the job, because he had served on missions in Western Australia before coming to Armidale. He secured help from numerous generous people in the Armidale community and set about building a house — occupied by Aborigines in January 1957. The AAAA also constructed a house which was opened in November 1958.
Father Kelly ran weekly dances for Aborigines and asked Bishop Doody to receive debutantes at an Aboriginal Ball. Mrs Sarah Archibald presented the debutantes to Bishop Doody at the historic ball. It was held in the Armidale Town Hall in a memorable month — October 1958 — between the death of Pope Pius XII and the election of Pope John XXIII.
Bishop Doody’s occasional address at the ball is still remarkable. He said: “Tonight we are making history. As far as I know this is the first function of its kind ever held in Australia. The Catholic Church has shown this interest because it teaches that all human beings are the children of God and are all equal in God’s sight. Race and colour counts nothing with God. It is the human person that counts… It is our wish that all citizens of Australia should live together as one great family, loving God, respecting each other and abiding by the laws of our country.”
Debutantes and their partners were Zelma Wright (Lachlan Vale), Grace Archibald (Clive Kelly), Olive Morris (Cyril Green), Margaret Kim (Cyril Archibald) and Shirley Beale (Chris Dotti). Bishop Doody presided at the supper prepared by women in the parish, and at the request of the debutants, he cut the debutantes’ cake.
Each succeeding year the Catholic Church ran the Aboriginal Ball, at which debutantes were presented to Bishop Doody or other very senior visiting Church dignitaries. Such functions were later discontinued when people became aware of their paternal nature.
Protection and assimilation have long since given way to self-determination, but it is important to recall the efforts of the AAAA and the Catholic Church in Armidale in earlier times to help Aborigines improve their conditions. These stories are part of our city’s actual history.
Congratulations to Queen Elizabeth II who is celebrating her Diamond Jubilee. She ascended the thrones of many countries upon the death of her father (King George VI), on February 6, 1952, and was proclaimed Queen by her various Privy and Executive Councils shortly afterwards. Her coronation was on June 2, 1953, so there will be another round of celebrations next year. God Save the Queen.
