Terrible conditions at Western Australia’s missions led to devastating loss and trauma. Calls are growing to investigate hundreds of graves and burial sites
There are no records identifying where they are buried in any of the available cemetery records. There are also instances of children reported as dying at institutions within those media reports who are not found in available burial registers.found by ground-penetrating radar scans at the former government-run Kinchela Aboriginal boys’ home in New South Wales, with survivors calling for the entire site to be investigated.
Media reports from the 1935 inquiry detailed the “barbarous treatment” of inmates, including being locked in a tiny bare shed for weeks at a time, “dilapidated dormitories” and “inadequate food” with children ending up in hospital because of a lack of nutrition.Children gathered outside the Moore River chapel circa 1920.In 2018, the WA government and the WA state library commemorated the 100th centenary of Moore River, unveiling a remembrance wall honouring the names of all those who died.
“It’s difficult,” Aunty Beverley says with a sigh, her eyes scanning the large unmarked burial grounds. Leon Wynne stands in a paddock near Carrolup/Marribank mission, which he has discovered is the resting place of his ancestors.‘A lot of them kids would have been buried here’ … a new street sign for Cemetery Road is already pock-marked with bullet holes.
At least 51 men, women and children died here, according to WA’s births, deaths and marriages records for Carrolup. His hearing was never the same: “I wasn’t able to tell nobody about it. My eardrum was busted, it was so sore, pus and blood. In school, I had to pretend I could hear what the teacher was saying.”
“We formed a bond that the missionaries tried to break but they couldn’t … We played brandy, played the world, hopscotch – you name it, we did it.” Jim Morrison is chair of the Western Australian Stolen Generations Aboriginal Corporation and a longtime advocate for Stolen Generations survivors. “I’d expect there to be [these] stories right around the country,” the Noongar elder says from home.
‘They are relying on our people not having memories or evidence’ … Jim Morrison, who advocates for Stolen Generations survivors.New Norcia mission: a dark history beneath tourist town The Ballardong Noongar elder has advocated for the mission’s true history to become known. New Norcia is now a popular day-trip destination, the town becoming a drawcard for tourists buying expensive olive oils and breads.
The monastic town of New Norcia. The current head of the Benedictine monastery says the number of unmarked graves is ‘highly concerning’.The monks at New Norcia say they are ‘committed to finding out as much as we can’.“They should allow those ground-penetrating machines to go over there … let the records be shown,” she says.
“It’s part of our daily tour now and this history is acknowledged. We use the terms emotional, physical and sexual abuse, so that it’s very real.”Wandering mission: stories of deaths and burials She reminisces about memories both good and bad. But there is one place on the mission that Aunty Frances remembers with fondness: the mission church. Its walls remain intact along with the carved wooden pulpit at the front.
“I was sexually abused here in that classroom. I had the chores to do and he used to keep me back in the classroom,” she says.
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