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Published On: Jun 23, 2007 08:38 PM
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Rounding Off
The trip to Albany, and the material I was able
to access, as well as the wonderfully helpful people I was fortunate enough to
meet, was all I could possibly have hoped for. There are a few minor regrets -
some photographs missed, some recordings which didn't work, but it is all
lessons to be applied for the next excursion; namely Darwin/Raffles Bay in 2007,
wherein Barker's period (before being transferred to Albany) there will be
researched. Anyway, here are some final thoughts and observations on my
trip.
Although Albany counts itself a city, one does
not have to go far to find a beach, bordered by bush, and not unlike what it
would have been like 180 years ago. For example, I walked out to Possession
Point one day, along a beach as white as snow, through some bush, and sat on a
great granite slab overlooking Attaturk Straight, the entrance to Princes Royal
Harbour. Across the narrow straight the 'city' of Albany nestled between the
book-ends of Mount Melville and Mount Clarence, with wheat silos and a wood
chipping operation on the wharfs being the only real assault on the eye. But
where I sat and gazed and rested, it would have changed little since Collet
Barker did the same in 1830. A further trip to Frenchman's Bay with Dot, Carol,
and Iris, (Ira's Mum) who spent the last few days with me at Emu Point, revealed
a fresh water stream running into the ocean, where Captain Vancouver watered his
ship during his journey of 1890...
Vancouver's fresh water
source
Dot, Iris,
Carol.An environment such as this
makes it easier to visualise the period of Barker's command, not only from the
point of view of the less than a hundred soldiers and convicts who made up the
white population of the day, but also from the view of the original inhabitants.
For the Aboriginal perspective, I was fortunate enough to have met the
Aboriginal people I have described in previous blogs, but my knowledge was
enhanced by a meeting with local historian, author, and ex ABC journalist Les
Johnson, with whom I met for two hours in his extensive home library. As well as
his helpful insights into the region, Les showed me many useful and pertinent
passages from the books in his library which I gratefully photographed for my
records. Unfortunately I neglected to take a photo of Les, but he has promised
to send me one. I also met with a fine
retired gentleman called Bill Hassell, who grew up in a region to the north-east
of Albany called Jarramungup, where his grandfather ran a property with the
assistance of the local natives. In his fine house nestled at the foot of Mount
Clarence, and overlooking Princes Royal Harbour, Bill talked of his upbringing
surrounded by his native friends, and of his fluency in the language. He also
told me of the availability of a book written by his grandmother and published
by his cousin, called My Dusky
Friends, in which Ethel Hassell tells of her
experiences with her daily companions in the 1890s, as well as being a
collection of the dreamtime stories they told her in those days. Bill's help was
also invaluable.
Bill
Hassell
Bill's 100 year old
collectionMy journey back to Mandura
did not include an extensive exploration of either the Porongurups or the
Stirling Ranges; explorations which will need to be undertaken in some future
trip.
Stirling
RangesBack in Mandura Steve and Ira
Casserley were the perfect hosts.
Steve and
IraTheir hospitality included a
trip to Perth with Ira, during which we obtained two copies of the book
My Dusky
Friends, from the publisher, Cleve Hassell,
who we shared afternoon tea with, overlooking the Swan River in Dalkeith. I was
also able, thanks to Ira's support, to find the gravestone of my paternal
grandfather in the Karrakatta cemetery. Albert Wilkie Innes died at the age of
thirty five at Claremont in 1920, of
tuberculosis.
Albert (Bert) Wilkie Innes's resting
placeThe assistance of all the people
mentioned in these blogs was invaluable, but in particular the hospitality of
Steve and Ira, and the use of the corona and the Emu Point house made it all
possible, and I cannot thank them enough. The completion of my project owes it
to all who assisted.
Posted: Tue - November 28, 2006 at 03:36 PM
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