In the 1840s, four Scottish brothers settled/invaded the Upper Richmond River and established Ettrick Station. Three of them, John, Robert and Bryce, wrote letters home describing the land, the state of their flock of sheep, their problems finding workers, their food, clothes and health. We don’t know the name of the fourth brother but his initial was A. Woven through their letters are stories of their encounters with the original owners of the land, the Galibal. It is clear that the Galibal were working hard to understand and work with the invaders. At times there were violent clashes, only hinted at in the letters.
In February 1845, the twenty-something-year-old Robert wrote home about how one of the Aboriginal men wanted to trade the rope of hair he wore about his waste for Robert’s silver watch-guard. The following article, A Hair Rope for a Silver Watch-Guard, explores what this interaction might have meant for the two men who were encountering each other across deep language and cultural differences.
Read A Hair Rope for a Silver Watch-Guard
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