Living on the Reserve - Broome 1968-1982

Project Overview

The Living on the Reserve project aims to document, via personal accounts, stories, recollections, photographs and with some reference to archival material, what life was like for Aboriginal families living on the Anne St Reserve in Broome, from the late 1960s until the early 80s.

The timeframe for the inquiry – from 1965 to 1985 – is set to coincide with a general shift in approach to managing such Aboriginal populations, from exclusion and protection, to assimilation, to self-determination. People who can recall what life was like as adults living on these reserve areas are now quite advanced in age; hence the project has received a positive response in many discussions as to the urgency of recording the recollections of people from these times.

Chief Investigators on the project are Anna Dwyer and Kathryn Thorburn. They can be contacted at anna.dwyer@nd.edu.au or kathryn.thorburn@nd.edu.au or telephone Nulungu Research Institute on 9192 0670. The project will be hosting a large meeting for ex-residents and other people who are connected to this era of Broome’s history on the 17 November 2016. The meeting will be held at the Multi-purpose Hall at the University of Notre Dame’s Broome Campus, from 9 – 4.

Please RSVP to nulungu@nd.edu.au, or leave a message at 0428 525 261, for catering purposes.