4.0 The Indigenous Cultural Landscape
4.1 Introduction
This section reviews the evidence for the Aboriginal occupation of the Lake Burley Griffin Study Area in
its broader regional context. It discusses previous archaeological research and the results of field
surveys carried out for this heritage assessment.
4.2 Tribal Boundaries and Language
Tribal boundaries within Australia are based largely on linguistic evidence and it is probable that
boundaries, clan estates and band ranges were fluid and varied over time. Consequently, ‘tribal
boundaries’, as delineated today, must be regarded as approximations only, and relative to the period of,
or immediately before, European contact. Social interaction across these language boundaries appears
to have been a common occurrence.
A reconstruction of clan boundaries based on Tindale1 indicates that the southern Canberra area was
close to the tribal boundaries of the Ngunnawal and Walgalu people. According to Tindale2 the territories
of the Ngunawal, Ngarigo and Walgalu peoples coincide and meet in the Queanbeyan area. Horton’s3
map shows a Ngarigo tribe in the southern Canberra area. Cooke4 believes that considerable mingling
between the Northern Ngarigo and the Southern Ngunawal would have occurred. Flood5 claims this
area of the ACT as Ngarigo territory.
Bluett states that the Aboriginal group which camped at Pialligo was referred to by early settlers as the
‘Pialligo Blacks’, and the larger group which camped near Black Mountain was called the ‘Canburry or
Nganbra Blacks’.6
Jackson-Nakano7 notes that Aboriginal family groups within the Canberra-Queanbeyan district and
surrounds were known by many names in the early nineteenth century, but local Europeans who knew
them best referred to them as Kamberri—also spelled Kgamberry, Kamberra and even Nganbra
(Ngambri). She says the heart of their country was centred on the area now referred to as the Acton
Peninsular. Some Kamberri individuals, she says, intermarried with neighbouring Ngunawal families
from the 1880s, and some descendants of such marriages re-identify in modern times as Ngunnawal.
While maintaining their distinct association with the ACT and surrounds, members of KamberriNgunnawal families might also identify personally as Ngunawal, Walgalu or even Wiradjuri through their
familial links to these other groups.8
There is some uncertainty as to which language was spoken by the Aborigines of Canberra. The
Canberra area appears to have been close to the linguistic boundary between the Gundungurra,
Ngarigo and Ngunnawal languages. Eades9 notes that grammars published by Matthews10 for these
languages are virtually identical. However, according to Eades’ boundaries, the Ngunnawal of Canberra
probably spoke the Gundungurra language.
4.3 Previous Archaeological Research and Recorded Sites
Stone artefact scatters are the most frequently occurring residue of prehistoric activity in the Canberra
region. They may range considerably in size and density, factors that are often interpreted as an
indication of intensity of the Aboriginal landuse. As well, they provide insight into stylistic and
technological behaviours. Such scatters are representative of one or more stages in what is termed a
‘reduction sequence’; that is, the entire process from obtaining stone raw material, to manufacture of
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
43
stone artefacts and to eventual discard or loss and incorporation into the archaeological record. Isolated
finds are artefacts that occur without any apparently associated archaeological materials or deposit.
Open scatters are defined as spatially concentrated occurrences of two or more flaked stone artefacts.
Broad distinctions may be made between sites formed as a result of general living and habitation
activities and sites located in response to the fixed locations of specific resources. Occupation sites
relating to the former activities are most commonly recognised by the discard of flaked stone materials in
sedimentary deposits. Subsequent processes of erosion or landuse may deflate or section these
sediments to reveal surficial or embedded (sometimes stratified) materials. Sites formed as a result of
resource location may be recognised by a range of features including the proximity of discarded stone
materials to source stone materials and characteristic extraction and use marks upon stone or wood
materials, ie quarries, hatchet grinding grooves and scarred trees.
The wider regional pattern of Aboriginal occupation site occurrence within the ACT is one of higher site
size and frequency in areas proximate to major permanent water bodies, with a reduction in site size and
frequency around less permanent water sources. While sites have been found to occur throughout
topographic and vegetation zones, there is a tendency for more of the larger sites to be located in
proximity to creeks, wetlands and proximate parts of valley floors. A trend for larger sites to be near
major water sources, but avoiding frost drainage hollows, was noted at a regional level by Flood.11
Elsewhere in the Canberra region, high site and artefact frequencies have also been correlated with the
geographic occurrence of specific resources, particularly stone procurement (lithic outcrop) locations.
Based on the brief records and observations made by a limited number of interested local individuals
and artefact collectors, it appears that the larger sites in the central Canberra area were associated with
the sand bodies situated within, and adjacent to, the fluvial corridor of the Molonglo River.12
It may be assumed that the Molonglo River corridor was an important prehistoric Aboriginal resource
zone that attracted a considerable level of hunter-gatherer occupation. This importance may have
paralleled that of the Murrumbidgee River corridor, where over 200 Aboriginal sites, including open camp
sites, stone quarries, scarred trees and ceremonial sites, had been recorded by the early 1990s.13
Archaeological surveys carried out along sections of the lower Molonglo suggests that gentle slopes,
spurs and alluvial flats along the river will exhibit the highest archaeological potential.14 These areas are
sheltered climatically and located close to resources. The Molonglo River valley was the prime source of
water and food resources, and provided access to the Limestone Plains for local and visiting Aboriginal
groups.15
To date, there has been no systematic comprehensive survey for Aboriginal sites in the vicinity of Lake
Burley Griffin. Information about sites near the present lakeshore is generally sparse and is often
contained in obscure publications or is limited to oral sources. Stone artefacts have been noted in the
following locations, although the present status of most of these occurrences is unknown. All of these
sites are registered on the ACT Heritage Register and their locations are shown on Figure 4.1.
4.3.1 Black Mountain Peninsula
Aboriginal camps and corroborees were noted as occurring at the foot of Black Mountain, some close to
Sullivan’s Creek and the present Lake Peninsula. Bluett16 states that the Nganbra (sub-group of the
Ngunawal) stayed close to Sullivans Creek and Black Mountain, and that the area was used for intergroup gatherings with visiting tribes, while Pialligo was used for more local gatherings. He refers to this
area as the favourite corroboree ground and places its location at the foot of Black Hill (so named due to
the Aboriginal people congregating there), north of the Molonglo River.
44
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
This was probably the site of the native camp that George Augustus Robinson visited in 1844. He
records that he ‘visited a camp of natives near Walumbla (Yarralumla) the residence of Mr Murray, the
member for the county’.17
Sarah Rolfe recalled that when her family settled at Springbank in 1849, Aborigines were still holding
corroborees in the area near Black Mountain.18
There is an open campsite noted by Flood in her publication The Moth Hunters19 and subsequently
included in the Sites of Significance in the ACT Publication20, located on Black Mountain Peninsula. The
site is described by Flood as a medium sized lowland camp located on a sandy spur. This site is
registered with the ACT Heritage Register.
Flood21 commented that Pialligo appears to have been the largest local Canberra site, followed by Black
Mountain Peninsula. Flood postulates that ‘in the cold months the Aborigines would have moved out of
the frost plains onto slightly higher ground, such as the camps at Mt Ainslie, Black Mountain or Mt
Stromlo’.22
Artefacts were collected from this site by HP Moss in the 1920s and are now included in the Moss
Collection. Bindon classified these artefacts in 1973.23 Moss recorded that ‘the sand ridges near
Duntroon and the spur from Black Mountain have proved to be the richest in the larger artefacts… it is
most likely that excavation would reveal much more important material’.24 The Moss collection is
currently on display at the National Museum of Australia.
Lyall Gillespie has also collected over 100 artefacts from this site, and noted the presence of imported
ochre at the site.25 In 1974 Gillespie recorded over 500 artefacts from the site on Black Mountain
Peninsula.26
A pecked axe-head was discovered at the foot of Black Mountain in 1957 by Donald and Elise Tugby.27
Numerous Aboriginal sites have been recorded on Black Mountain. These consist of isolated artefacts,
artefact scatters and a possible scarred tree. Rising above the surrounding topography, it is a focal point
and has long been associated with Aboriginal occupation. The number of sites located on its slopes
attest to its importance in the region. Sections of Black Mountain have been investigated in the course
of surveys for fire trail development28, upgrades of facilities at the Botanic Gardens29, and road
alignments running along its basal slopes.30
A burial site has also been reported for Black Mountain. In 1916 the Queanbeyan Age newspaper
reported the discovery of bones under a shelving rock on Black Mountain31 that were presumed to be
Aboriginal. Gale disputes that the remains were Aboriginal and recounts the story of escaped outlaws
hiding in a cave on the mountain and how one was never located. It is his belief that the remains are of
that one remaining outlaw.32 Despite attempts to relocate this site, its location remains unknown.
4.3.2 Acton
Artefacts have been noted from an unspecified location on the Acton Peninsula.33 No further information
is available on these artefacts or their location. Artefacts were also collected from the Peninsula by HP
Moss in the 1920s and 1930s, and by WP Kinsela in the 1930s. These artefacts are held by the
National Museum of Australia on Acton Peninsula.
WD Wright refers to a corroboree ground near the Canberra Church by the Old Duntroon Dairy which
‘served also as their general and best known meeting place’; however, he also mentions the
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45
Administrative buildings at Acton as part of the same site.34 Watson35 states ‘the sites of the corroboree
ground are said to have been near the administrative offices at Acton’.
No sites were recorded in the course of a survey conducted by Walshe36 as part of the Acton/West Basin
Cultural Heritage Study.
In 1997, Huys and Johnston undertook an Aboriginal archaeological investigation of the Lower Acton
Peninsula. They reported no Aboriginal archaeological evidence within the boundaries of their study
area and noted that there was no known Aboriginal spiritual association to that area.37 Mrs Agnes Shea
of the former Ngunawal ACT and District Indigenous Peoples Association stated that the area which
later became the Canberra Racecourse was an important meeting place. This area is now under the
waters of Lake Burley Griffin. Mr Don Bell (Buru Ngunawal Aboriginal Corporation) stated that there
used to be paintings in the caves/overhangs of the limestone outcrop.38
Ann Jackson-Nakano (2005) states that Canberry Station and later the Museum and AIATSIS were built
on the Ngambri’s main corroboree ground. Much of the corroboree ground is now submerged.39
4.3.3 Old Parliament House and Surrounds
Artefacts have been collected from the area around the Old Parliament House and Hotel Canberra area.
A stone axe was collected around 1915 by Charles Kaye behind the Hotel Canberra (Hyatt Hotel
Canberra) and another when the lawns at Parliament House were being formed. HP Moss in 1925
found numerous artefacts on a sandy ridge between Parliament House and the Molonglo River.40 WP
Kinsela also collected stone artefacts from the sandpits near Old Parliament House.41 This sandy ridge
was removed by construction workers as it interfered with the line of sight from Old Parliament House to
the Australian War Memorial.
4.3.4 Mount Pleasant (Old Duntroon Dairy)
WD Wright refers to the Old Duntroon Dairy sites as being the general and best known meeting place for
local Aboriginals.42 The dairy site overlooks the course of the Molonglo River. It provides views towards
Queanbeyan and was sheltered from westerly winds. The site of the old dairy is within the confines of
Department of Defence land at Duntroon and has not been surveyed. Surveys to the northwest of the
dairy resulted in the identification of two artefact scatters.
4.3.5 Pialligo
Pialligo is located adjacent to the Molonglo River, to the southeast and outside of the Lake Burley Griffin
Study Area. Numerous Aboriginal sites have been recorded at Pialligo. The main site area is located
near the Canberra Airport. This site was first collected by the Canberra Archaeological Society in the
1970s and has subsequently been the subject of considerable research, including a thesis.43 Thousands
of artefacts have been recovered from the Pialligo sites, indicating that it was a major area of Aboriginal
occupation. Flood interpreted this site to be a fishing camp occupied at a time of plenty. These periods
of rich resources would also have been the time when social gatherings such as corroborees would
have been held.44
Figure 4.1.shows the location of the registered sites in the study area.
46
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
Figure 4.1 Location of registered and other recorded Indigenous sites.
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
47
48
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
.4.3.6
Artefact Collections
The HP Moss Collection
The HP Moss collection consists of Aboriginal stone tools collected by Moss from sites in New South
Wales, Victoria, Tasmania and Canberra.
Moss collected Aboriginal stone tools in Canberra in 1929 and the 1930s, concentrating on areas under
threat of immediate development. His search was initiated by having found a stone axe head near the
Acton offices in 1919.
Moss collected artefacts from the following locations:
i.
on a sandy ridge between the Provisional Parliament House and the Molonglo River—a few
scrapers and points;
ii.
the sandy spur running down from Black Mountain towards the forestry school (Black Mountain
Peninsula);
iii.
the lawns of the Provisional Parliament House—an axe head;
iv.
between Scotts Crossing and Duntroon—flint scrapers and other evidence of stone age occupation;
v.
the area bounded by the Institute of Anatomy (National Film and Sound Archive) and Sullivans
Creek and the (old Canberra) Hospital—a large grinding stone and two pounding stones; and
vi.
sandpits near the Royal Military College at Duntroon (Pialligo) and between Scotts Crossing and
Commonwealth Avenue—material was obtained at depths up to five feet.
While most of the collection consists of surface finds, Moss noted in his 1939 article, ‘… a considerable
amount was recovered from depths ranging from two or three to six feet below the surface’.45
When it was still in the possession of the Institute of Anatomy, the HP Moss collection comprised 268
artefacts and 442 items of ‘waste material’ from Canberra. This range of artefactual material and the
large grinding stone and two pounding stones described by Moss in 1939, which appear to no longer
form part of the collection, imply a generalised hunter-gatherer based lifestyle in the region.46
WHP Kinsela’s Observations
WHP Kinsela collected artefacts in the ACT between 1932 and 1933, and reported his findings in 1934.47
He collected artefacts from near Sullivans Creek, Acton, Mount Pleasant at Duntroon and from the
sandpits near Parliament House (refer to Figure 4.2).
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49
Figure 4.2 Kinsela’s map showing locations of his 1930s sites. (Source: Mankind 1934 1(8):204–205)
4.4 Lake Burley Griffin and the NCA Lands
4.4.1 Yarramundi
Twelve Aboriginal sites have previously been identified in the Yarramundi Reach area and have been
entered on the ACT Heritage Register. These sites were identified as a result of the archaeological
survey of the site of a proposed museum site at Yarramundi Reach48 and the Stromlo Forest Cultural
Resource Survey.49 The sites, listed below in Table 4.1, consist of isolated finds (single stone artefacts)
and small artefact scatters.
The Yarramundi area has undergone major impacts since the sites were recorded, including recreational
use of the area, vehicle traffic, forestry and post-2003 bushfire activities. As a consequence, these
recorded sites were not visible/re-located in the course of the 2006 HMP surveys.
One area of potential archaeological deposit (PADYA1) was identified at Acacia Inlet in the course of the
field surveys for this study (description provided in Appendix B).
Table 4.1 Site and PAD Inventory for Yarramundi Reach
Site
Number
Recording
Date
Site Description
Grid Reference
AGD
YR1
1984
quartz scraper
689777.6092971
YR2
1984
artefact scatter
689796.6092890
YR3
1984
silcrete core
689707.6092962
YR5
1984
silcrete flake
689151.6092653
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Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
Site
Number
Recording
Date
Site Description
Grid Reference
AGD
YR6
1984
artefact scatter
689509.6092566
YR8
1984
pebble artefact
689279.6092051
YR9
1984
quartz artefact
688693.6092283
YR10
1984
artefact scatter
688501.6092196
Yr11
1984
quartz artefact
688537.6091966
B1
2003
quartz artefact
689562.6092715
11N1
1990
artefact
688598.6092035
11N2
1990
artefact
688549.6092086
PADYA1
2006
potential archaeological
deposit
4.4.2 Stirling Park
No Aboriginal sites have been previously recorded for Stirling Park.
One Aboriginal site, a possible scarred tree (SP ST1), was recorded on the crest of a hill near the
southwestern end of Stirling Park in the course of the HMP surveys (description provided in Appendix B).
The chair of the Buru Ngunawal Aboriginal Corporation, Don Bell, has stated that stone arrangements in
the eastern section of Stirling Park, outside the study area, have cultural significance to Aboriginal
people. These stone arrangements have been subject to previous archaeological assessment and have
been, we believe, conclusively identified as being the remains of stone-edged garden beds/tree
plantings and European in origin.50 Nevertheless, it should be noted that only the Aboriginal community
can determine Aboriginal cultural significance, and that confirmation of this significance component is
dependent on written submissions by the appropriate representative organisations.
Further discussion of these features is provided in Appendix B.
4.4.3 Springbank and Spinnaker Islands
Springbank Island is a man-made structure constructed for aesthetic effect when Lake Burley Griffin was
filled. Despite this, the potential for Aboriginal artefacts to occur on the island does exist as the material
used to form it may have originated from one of the sand bodies that occurred along the banks of the
Molonglo. These sand bodies have been found to be areas of high archaeological potential as many
Aboriginal artefacts have been collected from them historically. Due to the lack of knowledge as to the
original location of the material that now comprises Springbank Island, a field survey was undertaken to
assess its heritage potential.
Spinnaker Island is a remnant natural feature of higher ground that once would have been connected to
the spur line that runs to the Lake edge from Stirling Park. Due to its topography it has the potential to
have been used by Aboriginal groups in the past and survey was undertaken to identify the presence of
any Aboriginal artefacts.
No Aboriginal sites have been previously recorded for Springbank and Spinnaker Islands.
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
51
No Aboriginal sites were identified on Springbank and Spinnaker Islands in the course of the surveys for
this study; however, ground surface visibility on both islands was negligible (description provided in
Appendix B).
4.4.4 Submerged Sites
Historically, artefacts have been recovered from areas adjacent to the Molonglo River which, after the
formation of Lake Burley Griffin, have become submerged. Since these artefacts were collected
historically, the actual sites consist solely of a marked location on the map. There are two instances,
one by Moss and one by Kinsella, of collected artefacts being removed from sites which now are within
the lake boundaries. Kinsella marks the location on his map, where Moss just gives a description as a
sandy ridge between Parliament House and the Molonglo River. It is possible that Moss’ site was closer
to Parliament House and thus not within the lake boundaries; however, it is more probable that it was
found in the continuation of the same sandy ridge as Kinsella’s close to the Molonglo River.
There are also two locations described ethnographically which lie within the lake borders which are
remembered by the current Indigenous community as important. These are two ceremonial gathering
(Corroboree) sites, one at Acton on the site of the old Acton racecourse51 and the other at the foot of Mt
Pleasant.52 These two sites are listed at the ACT Heritage Unit but are not registered.
These four site locations are therefore approximate and are shown in Figure 4.3.
4.5 Conclusions
One area of potential archaeological deposit (PADYA1) at Acacia Inlet, 12 previously recorded sites in
the Yarramundi Reach area and one new site (a possible Aboriginal scarred tree) in Stirling Park have
been identified as evidence of Aboriginal occupation in the Lake Burley Griffin Study Area. In addition,
significant historical evidence exists that this landscape was rich in evidence of the Indigenous past prior
to its development and alteration for the development of Canberra. The cultural values attributed to this
area by the Indigenous communities of the region are discussed below.
4.6 Indigenous Social and Cultural Values
This section of the report investigates the nature and scope of values held by Indigenous communities
for the Lake Burley Griffin Study Area. The process of consultation with the Indigenous communities
was undertaken in compliance with the process outlined in the Ask First publication. Research for this
investigation has included consultation with the registered Indigenous stakeholders for the ACT: two
groups of the Ngun(n)awal53—the House/Williams family group Interim Namadgi Advisory Board and the
Buru Ngunwal Aboriginal Corporation—and with the Ngarigo Currawong Clan, which has a custodial
interest in the ACT. Initial contact was undertaken by phone and then meetings were arranged with
each of the groups on the shores of Lake Burley Griffin.54 These meetings allowed for individual
discussions and visits to the different survey areas and known sites within the study area.
Representatives’ views were gathered on each of the survey areas, the sites that they contain (recorded
and unrecorded), and representatives were then invited to add any further information about the study
area. The results of these discussions were compiled into a statement of cultural significance for each of
the three representative organisations. These statements of significance were then circulated to each
group with a letter asking for confirmation of the contents and inviting any amendments or further
information that they would like to add. Follow up phone calls to confirm the veracity of the statements
were then undertaken by the consultant team of Navin Officer.
The following discussion is a compilation of the comments and views conveyed to the consultant team.
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Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
4.6.1 House/Williams Family Group
Lake Burley Griffin holds a level of cultural significance to the Ngunnawal people as it contains within its
confines many sites of importance, including a large ceremonial site located between Black Mountain
and Acton Peninsula. This ceremonial site became the site of the Acton racecourse before the Lake
was filled. Visits to the shore of the lake are undertaken as part of the education of Ngunnawal youth
and the location of submerged sites and the role of the Molonglo in the past are passed on to the
younger generation. The submerged sites within the lake are testaments to the traditional life of the
Ngunnawal on the Molonglo River prior to the intrusion of Europeans and the dispersal of the
Ngunnawal.
In addition to its historical importance as the location of submerged prehistoric sites, the lake has gained
current significance as the setting of the Old Canberra Hospital which was located on the Acton
Peninsula. As a consequence, a large number of the current community were born on the shores of the
lake and many members were treated for illnesses, have died or lost family members at that place.
Sites of birth and death hold significance to the Ngunnawal.
The areas of land at Yarramundi Reach and Stirling Park hold a low level of significance to the
community as their traditional land. The sites that exist within these areas attest to their prior habitation
and hold high importance to the community.
The Ngunnawal have no objection to any heritage listing of the Lake Burley Griffin Study Area but feel
that it is the individual Indigenous sites, not the lake area as a whole, that should be listed and
protected55.
4.6.2 Buru Ngunawal Aboriginal Corporation
Lake Burley Griffin is a man-made construction that of itself holds no particular significance to the
Ngunawal people. The submerged landscape of the Molonglo River and the river flats retain cultural
significance as the land of the Ngunawal people prior to European settlement and displacement of the
indigenous community. There are numerous submerged sites of significance to the Ngunawal, including
rock art paintings and ceremonial sites that are known to the Ngunawal nation. The location and role of
these sites in the past are passed on to the next generation as part of their education. The traditional
knowledge as to the location and past function of these sites is held to be private to the Ngunawal
people.
Yarramundi Reach and Stirling Park also hold significance to the community, as does all land within the
ACT. Stirling Park has a high level of significance to the community as it contains within its confines
many sites, some of which are ceremonial and refer to specific men and women’s ceremonies. The
location of these sites and their function is private to the Ngunawal and is not discussed outside of the
community
Don Bell (Chairman of the Buru Ngunawal Aboriginal Corporation) has expressed the view56 that the
Ngunawal have suffered grievously from the impact of European settlement, culminating in the dispersal
of the community into missions and reserves away from the ACT into the surrounding areas of New
South Wales. This has made it difficult to maintain traditional ties and knowledge with ACT land.
However, the Ngunawal state that they have managed to retain ties and they are determined to carry on
their traditional ties to their ancestral lands.
The construction of Lake Burley Griffin further devalued and desecrated the traditional life of the
Ngunawal and it stands as a testament to the ignorance about, and the level of disregard for, Aboriginal
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
53
values at the time of the construction of the city of Canberra. There is no desire on the part of the
community to see the lake listed as a heritage site.
4.6.3 Ngarigo Community
The Ngarigo people state that Lake Burley Griffin holds current cultural significance for them due to the
location of submerged sites below its surface. These sites are seen as a testament to the past
Aboriginal presence in the area. The inaccessibility of these sites to the modern Indigenous population
has decreased their cultural importance to being simply markers of the presence of Aboriginal people in
the past. However, they are tangible reminders of this presence prior to European settlement and the
disruption of the community.
The Molonglo River was important as a transit route for Indigenous groups travelling into the Canberra
region for gatherings or movements into the mountains, and, such as, the original river corridor has
many sites of significance located along it. Areas of land at Yarramundi Reach and Stirling Park abutted
this river corridor and as such possess a low level of significance. The possibility of sites occurring
within these areas is considered, in the view of the community, as high, although the location of any
specific sites was unknown. Any sites that occur within these areas are considered to be high in
importance to the Ngarigo as sites within the central Canberra region occur rarely due to the impact of
prior development.
The Ngarigo expressed the view57 that the settlement of the area by Europeans has destroyed their
traditional life in the area now known as Lake Burley Griffin, and that it forced a dispersal of the
community and a disruption of traditional ways. They feel that the construction of the lake, causing the
destruction of so many Aboriginal sites and history, was a great sacrifice for the Ngarigo for which they
have not received acknowledgement.
It was also expressed that after having exacted such a sacrifice from Aboriginal people, the government
now has an obligation to maintain Lake Burley Griffin in a clean, pleasing state to honour the desecration
of the past.
Although Lake Burley Griffin holds significance for the Ngarigo community today, the representatives of
that community were not of the opinion that it deserved listing on any heritage register—their view was
that the sites below the surface may warrant listing in the same way as other Aboriginal sites in the
region.58
4.7 Summary of Indigenous Social and Cultural Values
Lake Burley Griffin holds no special value for the Indigenous groups consulted; however, the Indigenous
cultural and archaeological sites in the Lake Burley Griffin Study Area including the areas at Stirling Park
and Yarramundi Reach are important, tangible reflections of the long Aboriginal presence in the area.
The lake is also important to the Ngunnawal people as the setting of the Old Canberra Hospital, which is
of significance to this community as a place of birth and death. Lake Burley Griffin is therefore
considered by Indigenous groups as superimposed upon a landscape of Indigenous cultural places and
values, which nevertheless requires ongoing respect, recognition and management.59
54
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
Figure 4.3 Approximate location of submerged Indigenous sites based on historical information.
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
55
56
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009
4.8 Endnotes
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
Tindale, NB 1974, Aboriginal Tribes of Australia. ANU Press, Canberra.
Tindale, NB 1940, ‘Results of the Harvard-Adelaide Universities Anthropological Expedition, 1938–1939, distribution of Australian Aboriginal
Tribes: a field survey’ Transactions of the Royal Society, South Australia, Vol 64(1), pp 140–231.
Horton, A 1999, Map of Aboriginal Australia in The Encyclopedia of Aboriginal Australia. Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait
Islander Studies.
Cooke, H 1988, An investigation into the prehistory of Blue Water Holes and Cooleman Plain, NSW, unpublished B.A.(Hons) Thesis, Dept.
of Prehistory, Australian National University, Canberra, pp 33–34.
Flood, J 1984, ‘Recent Research on traditional Aboriginal society of the Canberra area’ Canberra Historical Journal Vol 13, pp 22–23.
Bluett, WP 1954, The Aborigines of the Canberra District at the Arrival of White man. Manuscript held at the Library of the Australian
Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, Canberra, p 1.
Jackson-Nakano, A 2001, The Kamberri: A History of Aboriginal Families in the ACT and Surrounds. Aboriginal History Monograph 8,
Weereewaa History Series 1, Australian National University Press, Canberra, p xiv.
Ibid, p xv.
Eades, DK 1976, ‘The Dharawal and Dhurga Languages of the New South Wales, South Coast.’ Australian Aboriginal Studies Research
and Regional Studies No. 8, AIAS, Canberra.
Matthews, RH 1900, ‘The Gundungurra grammar.’ In The organisation, language, and initiation ceremonies of the Aborigines of the southeast coast of NSW Royal Society of NSW Journal and Proceedings, Vol 34, pp 262–281.
Matthews, RH 1901, The Gundungurra Language’ American Philosophhical Society Proceedings, Vol 40, pp 140–148.
Matthews, RH 1904, ‘The Ngunawal Language.’ In the Wiradyuri and other languages of NSW. Anthropological Institute of Great Britain
and Ireland Journal, Vol 33, pp 294–299.
Flood, op cit.
Robinson, FW 1927, Canberra’s first hundred years and after. Penfold, Sydney, 2nd ed.
Binns, K 1938 Handbook for Canberra Prepared for the Members of the ANZAAS on the occasion of its meeting held in Canberra, January,
1939, Commonwealth Govt Printer.
Moss, HP 1939, Evidence of Stone Age Occupation of the Australian Capital Territory, ANZAAS Vol 24, pp 163–166.
Bluett, WP 1954, The Aborigines of the Canberra District at the Arrival of White Man, manuscript held at the Library of the Australian
Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies.
Schumack, JE and S, op cit.
Bindon, P 1973, Surface Campsite collections from the ACT, Australian Institute of Aboriginal Studies Newsletter Vol 3(6), pp 4–11.
Klaver, J 1993, The Known Aboriginal Archaeological Resource Murrumbidgee River Corridor, report prepared for David Hogg Pty Ltd by
Navin Officer Archaeological Resource Management.
English, WB 1985, Where the Molonglo Runs, unpublished BA(Hons) Thesis, Department of Prehistory and Anthropology, Australian
National University, Canberra, ACT, p 73.
Bulbeck, D and P Boot 1990, Stromlo Forest Cultural Resource Survey, report prepared for ACT Heritage Unit, p 19.
National Capital Planning Authority 1995, Lake Burley Griffin Management Plan, unpublished NCPA report.
Bluett, op cit.
Mackaness, G 1941, George Augustus Robinson’s journey into south-east Australia, 1844, DS Ford, Sydney, p 25.
Gillespie, op cit., p 12.
Flood, op cit.
National Capital Planning Authority 1988 Sites of Significance in the ACT. Vol 2, Inner Canberra.
Flood, op cit., p 2.
Flood, op cit, p 166.
Bindon, op cit.
Moss, op cit, p 165.
Lyall Gillespie 1992, pers. comm
Gillespie, op cit., p 13.
Tugby, DJ and E 1964, Measurements on a Stone Axe-Head from Canberra, ACT, Mankind Vol 6, pp 190–2.
Navin Officer 2003, Investigation of Aboriginal heritage places along fire trails in Canberra Nature Park, report prepared for ACT Nature
Parks.
Barz, KR 1985, An archaeological survey of the site of the proposed extension to the Australian Botanic Gardens, NCDC, Canberra.
Officer, N 1995, Aboriginal Archaeological Survey Proposed Nursery and Depot Complex Australian National Botanic Gardens Canberra
ACT, report prepared for National Botanic Gardens ACT.
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Navin Officer Heritage Consultants 2002, Gungahlin Drive Extension Project: Glenloch Interchange ACT Archaeological Assessment
Summary Report, report prepared for ACT Dept. of Urban Services.
Navin Officer Heritage Consultants 2003 Gungahlin Drive Extension Aranda Precinct: Comparison of Intersection Options Cultural Heritage
Assessment, report prepared for WP Brown and Partners for the ACT Department of Urban Services.
Navin Officer Heritage Consultants 2003, A cultural Heritage Assessment of some proposed Gungahlin Drive Extension easements in the
Glenloch Interchange Area, report to Roads ACT, Department of Urban Services.
Officer, K 1997, Cultural Heritage Assessment Proposed John Dedman Parkway and Alternative Options. Report prepared for Maunsell
Pty Ltd, published as Working Paper 5 in Maunsell Pty Ltd 1997 John Dedman Parkway Preliminary Assessment Working Papers—
Environmental, prepared for ACT Government by Maunsell Pty Ltd.
Gillespie, op cit, p 8.
Gale, J 1927, Canberra A History of and Legends Relating to the Federal Capital Territory of the Commonwealth of Australia. Epworth
Press, Sydney, p 99.
Pers.comm. Helen Cooke ACT Heritage Unit 1992.
Pers.comm. Lyell Gillespie, 1992.
Wright, WD 1923, Canberra, John Andrew and Co, Sydney, p 58.
Watson, F 1927, A Brief History of Canberra, Federal Capital Press, Canberra, ACT, p 15.
Walshe, K 1993, Archaeological survey of Acton/West Basin, report prepared for Freeman Collett and Partners Canberra.
Huys, S and D Johnston (Australian Archaeological Survey Consultants Pty Ltd) 1997, An Aboriginal Archaeological Investigation of Lower
Acton Peninsula including consultation with the Ngun(n)awal Aboriginal community regarding the heritage of the study area, report
prepared for the National Environmental Consulting Services (NECS), Canberra ACT, pp 8,17.
Huys, S and D Johnston 1997, op cit., p 8.
Jackson-Nakano, A 2005, Ngambri Ancestral Names for Geographical Places and Features in the Australian Capital Territory and
Surrounds, New Millennium Print, p 6.
Gillespie, op cit, p 14.
Kinsela, op cit, pp.204–5.
Wright, op cit, p 58.
Saunders, P 1989,Confounded by Carrots: The Archaeology of Sites under Cultivation at Pialligo, Australian Capital Territory, Litt.B Thesis,
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Flood, op cit, p 162.
Moss, op cit, p 165.
Freeman Leeson Pty Ltd 1996, Natural and Cultural Issues affecting Alternative sites for the Museum of Australia (2 vols), Vol 2, pp 4–5.
Kinsela, op cit.
Barz, KR 1984, An Archaeological Survey of the site of the proposed Museum of Australia, report prepared for ACT Heritage Unit.
Bulbeck, D and P Boot, op cit.
Navin Officer Heritage Consultants 2004, Kings Park and Block 1 section 128 Yarralumla Cultural Heritage Assessment, report to National
Capital Authority.
Watson, op cit, p 15.
Huys, S and D.Johnston, op cit, p 8.
Bluett, op cit.
Bindon, op cit.
The House/Williams Family Group use the spelling ‘Ngunnawal’, while the Buru Ngunawal use the spelling ‘Ngunawal’.
The dates for the meetings were: House/Williams group—20 April 2006; Buru Ngunawal—20 April 2006; and Ngarigo—3 May 2006.
ibid
ibid
ibid
ibid
The basis for these conclusions is set out above in Section 4.6.
Lake Burley Griffin—Heritage Assessment—Final Report, October 2009