Woorabinda, Queensland
Encyclopedia
Woorabinda (ˈwʊərəbɪndə)is an Aboriginal
community in central
Queensland
, Australia
, inland of Rockhampton
. At the 2006 census
, Woorabinda had a population of 851.
Woorabinda was first established in 1927 as a replacement for the Aboriginal camp at Taroom. People from at least 17 different language groups were forcibly placed in the camp and were under the control of the Chief Protector of Aborigines.
In 1942, during World War II
, a Lutheran Aboriginal mission at Cape Bedford on Cape York in far North Queensland was closed and the Aboriginal people were forcibly relocated to Woorabinda. Many died from sickness due to the poor sanitation and inadequate shelter from the frost and cold winter nights of the inland climate. One estimate puts the number of deaths of Bedford people during this period at 235. The survivors were allowed to return to Cape Bedford in 1949 to what is now known as Hopevale
.
The Woorabinda community is the only DOGIT Aboriginal community within the Central Queensland region. DOGIT communities have a special type of land tenure which applies only to former Aboriginal reserves. The land title is a system of community level land trusts, owned and administered by the local council.
Woorabinda is about two hours' drive west of Rockhampton
and has a population of around 1000 people. There is a much higher proportion of people under the age of 18 in Woorabinda than in the wider non-indigenous community. Woorabinda has in recent years been the most violent indigenous community in Queensland, with a rate of hospitalisations for assault 45 times the state average.
Australian Aborigines
Australian Aborigines , also called Aboriginal Australians, from the latin ab originem , are people who are indigenous to most of the Australian continentthat is, to mainland Australia and the island of Tasmania...
community in central
Central Queensland
Central Queensland is an ambiguous geographical division of Queensland that centres on the eastern coast, around the Tropic of Capricorn. Its major regional centre is Rockhampton and the Capricorn Coast and the area extends west to the Central Highlands at Emerald, north to the Mackay Regional...
Queensland
Queensland
Queensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, inland of Rockhampton
Rockhampton, Queensland
Rockhampton is a city and local government area in Queensland, Australia. The city lies on the Fitzroy River, approximately from the river mouth, and some north of the state capital, Brisbane....
. At the 2006 census
Census in Australia
The Australian census is administered once every five years by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The most recent census was conducted on 9 August 2011; the next will be conducted in 2016. Prior to the introduction of regular censuses in 1961, they had also been run in 1901, 1911, 1921, 1933,...
, Woorabinda had a population of 851.
Woorabinda was first established in 1927 as a replacement for the Aboriginal camp at Taroom. People from at least 17 different language groups were forcibly placed in the camp and were under the control of the Chief Protector of Aborigines.
In 1942, during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, a Lutheran Aboriginal mission at Cape Bedford on Cape York in far North Queensland was closed and the Aboriginal people were forcibly relocated to Woorabinda. Many died from sickness due to the poor sanitation and inadequate shelter from the frost and cold winter nights of the inland climate. One estimate puts the number of deaths of Bedford people during this period at 235. The survivors were allowed to return to Cape Bedford in 1949 to what is now known as Hopevale
Hopevale, Queensland
Hopevale, , Queensland, Australia is an Aboriginal community on Cape York Peninsula about 46 km northwest of Cooktown by road, and about 10 km off the Battlecamp Road that leads to Lakefield National Park and Laura...
.
The Woorabinda community is the only DOGIT Aboriginal community within the Central Queensland region. DOGIT communities have a special type of land tenure which applies only to former Aboriginal reserves. The land title is a system of community level land trusts, owned and administered by the local council.
Woorabinda is about two hours' drive west of Rockhampton
Rockhampton, Queensland
Rockhampton is a city and local government area in Queensland, Australia. The city lies on the Fitzroy River, approximately from the river mouth, and some north of the state capital, Brisbane....
and has a population of around 1000 people. There is a much higher proportion of people under the age of 18 in Woorabinda than in the wider non-indigenous community. Woorabinda has in recent years been the most violent indigenous community in Queensland, with a rate of hospitalisations for assault 45 times the state average.
See also
- McIvor, Roy (2010). Cockatoo: My Life in Cape York. Stories and Art. Roy McIvor. Magabala Books. Broome, Western Australia. ISBN 978-1-921248-22-1.