Carrolup Settlement

August 1912

Annie Lock, a representative of the Australian Aborigines Mission (AAM) stationed at Katanning, writes to the Chief Protector of Aborigines, Charles Gale, seeking support to secure a large area of land at Carrolup (Water Reserve 9098) for a self-supporting Aboriginal settlement. The reserve is located about 30kms west of Katanning near the confluence of the Carrolup and Carlecatup rivers. A local council of the AAM is established to progress the scheme.  

At the time, a large number of Noongar families were camping on the outskirts of the township on two reserves gazetted for their exclusive use. Miss Lock had established an Aboriginal school on one of the reserves. At the same time, there were growing objections amongst Katanning residents toward the proximity of the reserve and the presence of Noongar people in the townsite, the number having increased since the establishment of the school. 

March 1913

Mr Gale engages the District Surveyor to assess the proposed site for its agricultural potential. His report gives an unfavourable assessment of the capabilities of the land and goes so far as to state that the only redeeming qualities are the permanent water pools plus the absence of any objection from the Katanning Roads Board. The local council of the AAM respond by maintaining that a better alternative could not be found. 

April 1913

Mr Gale submits a report to the Minister for Aborigines detailing the scheme originally proposed by the AAM and recommends its adoption. The submission is put on hold due to no provision having been made in that financial year to meet the necessary expenditure likely to be incurred. Further reports on the suitability of the land by the Agricultural Department are sought. 

July 1913

The Agricultural Commissioner for the South-West provides a favourable report on the suitability of the proposed site and its potential to be cultivated to adequately address the needs of the residents. The report goes on to say that about 80 acres of land could be classed as good grazing land and would be most suitable for intensive culture, including the growing of vegetables and crops. 

August 1913

A signed petition by residents of Katanning is submitted to the State Government, requesting that immediate action be taken to have all Aboriginal people living in or near the Katanning townsite removed to Carrolup. The Government responds by once again advising that funds are not presently available to give effect to the request. 

November 1913

Mr Gale pays a visit to Katanning where he finds around 150 people camping on the reserve. 

June 1914

Mr Gale re-submits the detailed proposal for the establishment of a settlement to Cabinet, along with estimated expenditure. Cabinet responds by maintaining that the state of finance will not permit anything being done in the desired direction at the present time.

July 1914

In response to the existing unrest, the Education Department announces the imminent closure of the Katanning Aboriginal School and the requirement for the Department of Aborigines to assume financial responsibility for salaries and contingencies for a teacher. The closure is deferred until an alternative arrangement at Carrolup comes into effect. 

December 1914

• On 21 December, the Minister for Aborigines issues instructions for the removal of all Aboriginal people from the Katanning Reserve to Carrolup. 
• On Christmas Day, Police Superintendent Pinkis advises that police have informed all Aboriginal people to proceed to Reserve No. 9089 Carrolup.
• The removal occurs over the next 3 weeks. Miss Lock accompanies the men, women and children and distributes rations on behalf of the State Government until the arrival of a Superintendent.

January 1915

• Mr Gale advises the Director of Education that all Aboriginal people have been removed from Katanning Reserve and that ‘nothing has yet been definitely decided on the question of establishing another school’. 
  
• Shortly thereafter, an officer of the Aborigines Department inspects the encampment and reports that no shelter or buildings have been erected, ‘but as native timber is in abundance, and there is fair supply of paper-bark available, the new arrivals should have little difficulty in protecting themselves from the elements’.

April 1915

Official opening of a new mission room (also serving as a community hall), constructed by Miss Lock and the residents of Carrolup. The building walls are made from timber and tampered earth, along with an iron roof.

May 1915

A.O Neville replaces Mr Gale as the new Chief Protector of Aborigines.

June 1915

• William Fryer takes up duties as Superintendent of Carrolup. He is accompanied by his wife, Ethyl, who takes up a teacher position alongside Miss Lock. The couple are initially provided with a tent to live in prior to the construction of a Superintendent’s House. 
• Clearing commences for an area of 3 acres set aside for the establishment of additional buildings enclosed within a wire fence.
• Construction of stables for Miss Lock along with a framework for a ration shed completed.
• Establishment of a vegetable plot.
• First death. The deceased, a 35-year-old woman, is buried in an area where another 2 individuals were interned at an unknown date, well beforehand.
• There are now 40 residents, comprising of 13 men, 9 women, 9 girls and 9 boys. 

July 1915

16 children are attending school (under construction).

September 1915

• Number of residents has increased to 60, including 20 children attending the school. 
• Further clearing and burning activities occur in readiness for the expansion of agricultural pursuits.
• Construction of the ration shed is completed (20ft wide x 12ft long x 10ft high constructed with wattle and daub).
• Mr Neville visits to inspect the settlement and makes several recommendations including:

• The construction of child dormitories for Aboriginal children removed from their families.
• The acquisition of additional land to run a flock of 1000 sheep for slaughtering and economic return from the sale of wool and hides.
• The admission of Aboriginal people in the receipt of rations throughout the South-West to Carrolup.
• The closure of the Aboriginal school in Beverley and the transfer of the teacher to Carrolup.

October 1915

• Departure of a ‘fair number’ of ‘good workers’ taking up shearing opportunities, leaving behind a few ‘old men’ to continue with improvements.
• 4 photographs of residents previously taken by Mr Neville appear in The Daily News on 23 October along with a detailed report on the progress of the settlement and his vision for the future.  

November 1915

Construction of a temporary ‘bush house’ adjoining Miss Lock’s quarters is completed. The bush house serves to temporarily accommodate girls until permanent child dormitories can be constructed.

December 1915

Influx of people visiting the settlement over the Christmas period.

December 1915

Mr Neville’s report for the preceding 6 months highlights the following progress:

• 20 acres of land cleared and fenced with 3 wires on the external perimeter and 2 acres on the cross fences.
• 6 acres ploughed and seeded – pumpkin, maze, etc., very few germinate owing to the dryness of the season.
• Small quantity of vegetables harvested from garden plot.
• 50 acres of land ring-barked.
• 150 fence posts hewn and used to establish paddocks for cropping and stock raising purposes.
• Construction of a new road leading to the settlement via an upgraded river crossing filled with stone.

January 1916

• Work on the girls' dormitory commences.
• Additional 15 acres cleared for producing hay.
• Sunday school and church services conducted with 'most' residents attending.
• Roofing and floor added to the intended school building
• Second visit by Mr Neville who spends 2 days at the settlement during which time a sports carnival is held.
• Slight reduction in the number of residents, with the population falling to 50.

February 1916

• Girls’ dormitory ready for occupancy. Construction of adjoining dining room is next on the agenda with the superstructure already in place.
• Additional 50-150 fencing posts cut and cultivation paddock fenced into the settlement in readiness for the installation of an oven.
• Additional residents arrive from places as far away as Kellerberrin, Donnybrook, Wickepin and the Katanning area, the increase in numbers leading to corroborees being held on a nightly basis.
• Rations issued to 103 residents and denied to those who refuse to work.
• Prevalence of colds reported.
• Arrangement made for the provision of a sewing machine so that children’s garments can be made for the settlement.

March 1916

• Mr Neville and the Colonial Secretary, Hal Colebatch, pay a visit to the settlement.
• Construction of the dining room is completed.
• Prevalence of a toxic plant (poison bush) affecting sheep detected. Workers engaged in a concerted effort to remedy the situation.

April 1916

Reserve number 16370 comprising 10,768 acres of land is vested in the Colonial Secretary as an Aboriginal Settlement, expanding the original size of the Reserve from 700 acres.

June 1916

• Construction of a bake house using flattened kerosene tins for the roofing and walls almost complete.
• Construction of the boys’ dormitory nearing completion, with flooring and canvas walls added in readiness for occupancy. Boys are temporarily housed in a big tent, with a smaller number occupying the girls’ dormitory.
• A ‘fair amount of sickness’ is reported, resulting in 2 deaths, and absences from school. 

August 1916

• Boys engaged in odd jobs including carting wood for the bakehouse and other buildings, cleaning stables and raking yards.
  
• School conducted as regularly as possible, with colds and the presence of measles affecting attendance.
• Gardening operations continue with the sowing of additional carrots, turnips, peas and cabbages. Oat crops said to be ‘coming up nicely’.
• Telephone line completed through to Marracoonda — Katanning party line, linking the settlement to the outside world.
• The construction of an additional 1.5 miles of fencing around a proposed horse paddock is completed along with fencing of the Superintendent’s dwelling.
• Slight increase in the number of sheep, the flock consisting of 98 ewes, 7 wethers and 53 lambs. 12 slaughtered during the month for consumption.

September 1916

Mr Neville makes a fourth visit to the settlement and reports the following:

• Measles outbreak, about 20 cases reported, no deaths. Tents erected for the sick.
• 2 cases of tuberculosis, 1 death.
• New arrangements made with the Commissioner of Police for a constable to visit at least once a month to ensure that every able-bodied person is working and performing the duties allotted to them.
• The construction of a 4-room house for the Superintendent is completed with the assistance of an external carpenter.
• Girls’ and boys’ dormitories completed, along with children’s dining room and kitchen attachments, the buildings having been constructed with timber frameworks, canvas walls and iron roofs.
• 12 acres of land under crop while another 12 acres is about to be ploughed and seeded.
• Sufficient vegetables being grown to supply the whole settlement.
• Sheep purchased ‘some time ago’ are said to be doing well. Shearing takes place.
• Settlement population increases to 180, with additional arrivals from the metropolitan area.

October 1916

3 deaths during the month, including 2 elderly residents. The deceased are taken by horse and cart to Katanning for interment. 

November 1916

• School conducted in the workroom.
• Work regulated by the ringing of a bell.
• A brick making venture proves successful.
• 4 to 5 acres of mixed vegetable crops established with cabbages, cauliflowers, turnips, carrots, pumpkins, melons, peas and table maize being the principal varieties. 

December 1916

• Following reports of staff using corporal punishment against children at the settlement, the Superintendent is ordered to keep a punishment book to detail their name, the reason for the punishment, and the type of punishment inflicted. (This punishment book is now held at the State Records Office of Western Australia, in Series 2031 'Files (Aboriginal matters) — Chief Secretary's Department').
• Construction of a stone and brick laundry building nears completion.
• A small number of former residents return to the settlement for the Christmas season, with around 60 people present.
• First harvesting takes place with ‘satisfactory’ results.
• Installation of chaff cutter.
• Clearing and gardening activities continue.

March 1917

First Children’s Assistant appointed.

April 1917

Photographs of Miss Lock’s old quarters, a group of children and one of the families on the settlement feature in the Western Mail on 6 April. All 3 photos may have been taken as early as November the previous year.

June 1917

• A new school made of brick and stone is officially opened, with the stone obtained from within the reserve and the bricks manufactured onsite. 
• Mr Colebatch announces that in addition to providing a home for sick, aged and infirm Aborigines of the South-West, the object of the settlement is to establish a state institution for ‘waifs and strays’, for ‘both aborigines and half-caste, thrown on the care of the Aborigines Department,’. ‘There is no intention,’ he states, ‘of allowing the children to go back to camp life, as has been suggested in certain quarters, but to train and educate them, in order to fit them to earn their living in after life’.
• Construction of a stone hospital or ‘sick ward’ underway.
• Material gathered for the establishment of a teachers’ home and missionaries’ quarters, the former being built from stone quarried and bricks made on the settlement.
• 80 residents, including 35 children living within the fenced compound.

March 1918

• R.H. Underwood, the Minister controlling the Aborigines Department, pays a visit along with other parliamentarians and Mr Neville to officially open the new buildings.
• Arrangements are made for the transfer of children from the Dulhi Gunyah homestead in Victoria Park.
• 4 weddings take place on the one day. A description of this unique event is featured in the Great Southern Herald on 27 March.
• An estimated 120 residents, including children said to have originated from ‘all parts of the state, including the Murchison, Marble Bar, Derby, and the Margaret River (Kimberely) regions’.
• Increase in the number of breeding sheep to 350, excluding those set aside for butchering, as well as a number of pigs.
• Male adults said to earn 5/- per week for work undertaken whilst resident.

April 1918

Reserve number 16908 is excised from the existing reserve and proclaimed an Aboriginal Cemetery (Kojonup location 4086). The cemetery comprises 2 acres of land and is located a little to the north of the main settlement. Today, the majority of burials are located at the western extremity of the reserve, which has, over the years, reverted back to its original state. 

June 1918

Mr Fryer resigns as Superintendent after his brutal discipline at Carrolup makes news headlines.

May 1918

Moore River Native Settlement opens at Mogumber, with the first admissions taking place in late May.

August 1918

John Blake, formally a Major in the Australian Infantry Force, is appointed to replace Fryer as Superintendent.

October 1918

Mr Blake gives instructions for a carpenter to board up the bathroom window at the rear of the hospital and put a special bolt on the door so that it may be used as a detention cell pending the construction of a new one at the rear of the store.

December 1918

A second instance of multiple marriages takes place on the same day. On this occasion, 3 couples are married by an officiating Minister of religion before a crowd of 140 people, as well as Mr Neville and other officials. A detailed account of the event can be found in the Southern Districts Advocate, 9 January 1919.

September 1919

Mr Blake refuses to allow Aboriginal people with symptoms of sickness onto the settlement, fearing the introduction of influenza.

October 1919

The Secretary of the neighbouring Woodanilling Road Board raises concerns in the local press regarding the failure of the settlement to attain the goals for which it was intended, citing the continued presence of Aboriginal people in the township and nearby Katanning, and the refusal of the administration to accept those seeking admission during the height of the influenza epidemic.

January 1920

The District Medical Officer, Dr Pope, and the Commissioner for Public Health, Dr Everard Atkinson, pay a visit to inspect Carrolup's Hospital.

February 1920

A severe epidemic of colds affects the settlement resulting in 1 death. 

March 1920

The number of workers remains relatively stable with 13 men, 4 boys, 7 women and girls in regular employment. 

April 1920

• News of the death of Jerramungup Polly, who was stated to have been 110 years old and ‘probably the oldest’ Western Australian Aboriginal person when she was removed to the settlement from Ongerup area in June 1917, appears in a number of newspapers. Photographs of Polly are available in digital format on the State Library of Western Australia catalogue. 
• 126 residents including 63 children housed in dormitories.
• 17 men, 4 boys, 7 women and girls employed in various capacities.
• Visit by Mr Colebatch and Deputy Chief Protector of Aborigines. 
• The sale of wool and sheep skins forwarded onto market in Perth brings a return of £54.8.4. 

June 1920

• The average number of residents during the previous year was 111.
• Rations in the form of flour (or bread), tea, sugar and tobacco were distributed to adults, with sick people receiving additional rations of meat, broth, milk, sago, rice or porridge, and working adult males receiving meat. 
• Some of the better workers were paid small wages and permitted to purchase articles from the store, such as jam, treacle, milk, etc. 
• The children in the compound were fed porridge, bread and jam for breakfast, and bread and mutton stew for dinner which consisted of beans, peas, tapioca, etc, and fresh vegetables.

• Superintendent’s House: 4 rooms and bathroom. Walls jarrah. Lining asbestos. Roof iron. 
• Staff quarters: 4 rooms and kitchen. Walls stone. Roof iron. Stone washhouse and bathroom at rear.
• Hospital: 2 wards and nurse’s room. Veranda on three sides. Stone washhouse and bathroom at rear.
• Hall and schoolroom: 40ft x 25ft. Walls stone. Roof iron. 
• Children’s temporary dining room: 30ft x 17ft. Built with rough jarrah. Roof iron.
• New workroom: 40ft x 25ft. Walls jarrah. Roof iron. 
• Girls’ dormitory: walls stone. Roof iron. Floor cement. Ceiling jarrah. Front veranda. Bathroom containing copper, bath and basins. 
• Boys’ dormitory: similar to girls’ dormitory.
• Children’s washhouse: 20ft x 12ft with coppers and 3 troughs, walls stone and iron. 
• Bakehouse: Brick baker’s oven, with bakehouse built of bush timber and mud. Roof iron. 
• Store and cells: walls jarrah. Roof iron.
• Assistant’s cottage: 2 rooms. Walls jarrah. Roof iron.
• Stable and outbuildings: constructed of bush timber with thatched roofs.

August 1920

Mr Neville’s annual report for 1919 highlights the completion of an experiment to manufacture clothes for Aboriginal people throughout the state using the labour of women and girls at Carrolup, with several thousand suitable garments having been turned out during the year.

September 1920

The sale of sheep skins forwarded onto market in Perth brings a return of £28.8.6.

January 1921

34 people employed on the settlement, including 10 ‘serving girls’ and 4 domestic workers.

February 1921

• 30 cases of measles reported.
• 2 deaths from pneumonia. 

July 1921

August 1921

The sale of 62 sheep skins forwarded onto market in Perth brings a return of £13.18.10.

September 1921

Outbreak of influenza within the fenced compound, 25 cases reported.

October 1921

• Another epidemic of influenza occurs, resulting in the death of 2 elderly residents.
• 30 men and women employed on the settlement, including those engaged in domestic activities.
• Edward C. Mitchell, a former Travelling Inspector and the first Superintendent of the Moore River Native Settlement, is appointed to replace Fryer as Superintendent of Carrolup. 

December 1921

A reference to the engagement of Aboriginal policemen in residence at Carrolup is cited in the Sunday Times on 4 December (page 19). 

February 1922

An outbreak of whooping cough is reported.

June 1922

• Carrolup closes. 
• The remaining population of 112 is sent to the Moore River Native Settlement, with up to half a dozen more being retained for a short period to assist with the decommissioning of infrastructure. 
• The new Colonial Secretary justifies the transfer in monetary terms by highlighting a saving of £650 through the amalgamation in the first year and £1500 per annum thereafter. He also goes so far as to infer that the ‘climate at Moore River is more suitable for a native settlement than that which prevails at Carrolup’. 

1939

The Department of Native Affairs re-opens Carrolup as a school and institution for children removed from their families.  

1949

Carrolup school is shut down and school-age children are transferred to other missions according to their religious denominations.  

1951

Carrolup Settlement closes. The Department of Native Affairs reports that the adults were 'dispersed' but that teenage boys were kept there to establish Marribank Farm Training School. 

1952

• The Marribank Farm Training School closes. 
• The settlement and grounds are handed over to the Baptist Union which continues to operate the site as the Marribank Baptist Mission (later renamed Marribank Family Centre) until its closure in 1989. During this period the site was run as a residential home for Aboriginal children with 2 hostels, each run by ‘house parents’.