Aboriginal
Heritage
The
Aboriginal peoples of the
Rockingham area are part of the Nyoongar people. Nyoongar people
traditionally lived a nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle, travelling to and
from destinations and meeting areas throughout the seasons (Hayden & Hayden,
2002). Wetlands have great spiritual significance to Aboriginal people.
They were also sources of abundant food and fresh water and were often used
as camp sites. Nyoongar family groups usually moved through the south-west
landscape in a set pattern, within a designated tract of territory, often
following fresh water sources. (Drake & Kennealy, 1995, p.7) Outridge Swamp
located in the Baldivis Children's Forest forms part of an eastern chain of wetlands that run
parallel to the coast south of the Swan River, Perth.
Lake Cooloongup (adjacent to
the BCF) and Lake Walyungup (north BCF) hold special Dreaming significance
as places where the Sea
Waugal laid her eggs (Walley, pers.com.,
2002). Both of these sites are Nyoongar in origin (Draper, 1997).
Cooloongup means place of children and Lake Walyungup means place
where Nyoongars talk (Walley, pers.com., 2002). Lake
Cooloongup could be thought of as a place for children and Lake Walyungup a
place for adults. Karnup (south of the BCF) refers to the area around
Paganoni Swamp, and this name means place of Dreaming. It may be
thought of as a place for spiritual beings (Walley, pers.com.,
2002).
Although there is no recorded
information about the Aboriginal use or significance of Outridge Swamp, it is
likely that the swamp would have been a food source (wild fruits, long neck
turtle, hunting) for Nyoongar people as they travelled through the area for
food, ceremony and trade. The high limestone ridge in the forest would have
been important to Aboriginal peoples as a vantage point (Walley, pers.com.,
2004). There are a number of scarred tuart trees also in the forest indicating usage by
Aboriginal people (Joseph Collard, pers.com., 2006). The trunks were
cut and the bark removed for shields and yandi (carry utensils).
There are no known
Aboriginal
sites located at the forest that have been listed on the Aboriginal sites
register held by the Department of Aboriginal Affairs.
Non-Aboriginal
In the 1920’s the land in the
Baldivis area was subdivided into small farms for the Group Settlement
Scheme. The area of land around Outridge Swamp was used for dairy
activities. In 1965 Outridge Road was constructed and land subdivided for
sale (Santich, pers.com). Some of these properties were (and still are)
used for market gardens. Reserve 30269 (Baldivis Children's Forest) was created from Peel Estate
Lots 660 and 1314, gazetted in 1970 and vested in the Shire of Rockingham
for the purpose of “Parklands”. The Reserve was mainly utilised by
surrounding residents in the following years for recreational activities
such as picnics, walking and horse riding. Since 2000 the
focus of the Baldivis Children's Forest has been education and conservation activities for local schools.
References
Collard, Joseph (2006) Swan Catchment Centre.
Personal Communication.
Drake, C. & Kennealy, S. (1995) Recollections of the
Beeliar Wetlands. Booklet funded by the City of Cockburn, Waters and Rivers
Commission, City of Melville, Town of Kwinana, Alcoa of Australia.
Draper, R. (1997) Rockingham – the Visions Unfold.
City of Rockingham, Perth.
Hayden, C. & Hayden, J. (2002) Doorum Nyoongah
Advisory Group Aboriginal Community Economic Development and Management
Proposal. Unpubl. Doorum Nyoongah Advisory Group Aboriginal Corporation,
Rockingham, Western Australia.
Walley, T. (2002) Department of Conservation and
Land Management. Personal Communication. In:
Department of Conservation and Land Management (2003) Rockingham
Lakes Regional Park Draft Management Plan 2003-2013. Western Australia.
p.39-40.
Walley, T. (2004) Department of Conservation and
Land Management. Personal Communication.
Useful links
