53-588: The Maribyrnong River is a significant river in Melbourne, Australia. Maribyrnong may also refer to: Maribyrnong River The Maribyrnong River / ˈ m æ r ə b ə n ɒ ŋ / is a perennial river of the Port Phillip catchment, located in the north–western suburbs of Melbourne , in the Australian state of Victoria . The Maribyrnong River draws its headwaters from near Mount Macedon within
106-448: A giant horseshoe bend, before winding south again at Brimbank Park . Here the river flows 55 metres (180 ft) below the western plains. Brimbank Park forms a huge amphitheatre in the bend in the river with picnic areas, cycle and walking trails, and a café, that is usually busy on weekends and holidays. The area is rich in birdlife and native fauna. The Maribyrnong River Trail shared path starts at Brimbank Park, following mostly beside
159-631: A human hearth excavated in 1971 was radiocarbon-dated to about 31,000 years BP , making Keilor one of the earliest sites of human habitation in Australia. A cranium found at the site has been dated at between 12,000 and 14,700 years BP . Archaeological sites in Tasmania and on the Bass Strait Islands have been dated to between 20,000 – 35,000 years ago, when sea levels were 130 metres below present level allowing Aboriginal people to move across
212-682: A kangaroo hunting ground. Creation stories describe how Bunjil was responsible for the formation of the bay, or the bay was flooded when the Yarra river was created (Yarra Creation Story ). The Woiwurrung tribes would have been aware of the Europeans, through the close relationship to the Boon wurrung people of the coast who came into contact with the Baudin expedition on the French ship Naturaliste during 1801, and then
265-688: A smallpox epidemic had swept through the tribes around Port Philip before 1803 reducing the population. Broome puts forward that two epidemics of smallpox almost annihilated the Kulin tribes by perhaps killing half each time in the 1790s and again around 1830. The Wurundjeri incorporated these epidemics in their oral tradition as the Mindi , a rainbow serpent from the Northwest sent to destroy or afflict any people for bad deeds, hissing and spreading white particles from its mouth from which disease could be inhaled. Any plague
318-465: Is Woiwurrung for river, as seen in the names of other watercourses in the area, such as; Koonung Creek and Birrarung ). Marriburnong is an alternate spelling listed on a map dated from 1840. The inner western and north-western suburbs of Melbourne are located in the vicinity of the Maribyrnong River and the river has given its name to the suburb of Maribyrnong and the local government area,
371-584: Is at once both the ancient time of creation and the present day reality of Dreaming. There were a great many different groups, each with their own individual culture, belief structure, and language. These cultures overlapped to a greater or lesser extent, and evolved over time. The two moiety totems of the Woiwurrung people are Bunjil the Eaglehawk and Waang the Crow. William Thomas witnessed Woiwurrung people playing
424-516: Is likely to have explored up the river in early 1835. With the establishment of the colony of Melbourne later that year, sheep runs were soon established by Edmund Davis Fergusson and Michael Solomon in the Avondale and Sunshine areas. On Solomon's sheep station the ford now near the west end of Canning Street in Avondale Heights soon became known as Solomon's Ford . This was the lowest crossing on
477-594: Is most awfully on the increase though it cannot be detected—their argument has some reason 'No good pickaninnys now no country'". On the instructions of Charles La Trobe a Native Police Corps was established and underwritten by the government in 1842 in the hope of civilising the Aboriginal men. It was based at Narre Warren , but later moved to Merri Creek and continued in operation until disbanded in January 1853. As senior Wurundjeri elder, Billibellary 's cooperation for
530-519: Is perceived as part of their duty of hospitality. In 1840, conflict erupted at the Battle of Yering , near present-day Yarra Glen, in which Border Police under the direction of Commissioner of Lands, Captain Henry Gisborne captured Wurundjeri leader Jaga Jaga, eliciting a violent confrontation involving 50 Wurundjeri clansmen where shots were exchanged. As early as 1843 Billibellary requested land for
583-455: Is supposed to be brought on by the Mindye or some of its little ones. I have no doubt that, in generations gone by, there has been an awful plague of cholera or black fever, and that the wind at the time, or some other appearance from the north-west has given rise to this strange being. On 6 June 1835 John Batman met with eight elders of the Woiwurrung people including Bebejan and Billibellary ,
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#1732847533450636-596: The City of Maribyrnong . The Maribyrnong River valley has been home for the Wurundjeri people of the Kulin nation for up to 40,000 years. Human remains dated at least 15,000–years–old have been found along the river, with much older signs of human habitation also present. The first Europeans to explore along the river were the party led by Charles Grimes , Deputy Surveyor-General of New South Wales , in February 1803. John Batman
689-555: The Dja Dja Wurrung and Taungurung to the north. Before colonisation , they lived predominantly as aquaculturists , swidden agriculturists (growing grasslands by fire-stick farming to create fenceless herbivore grazing, garden-farming murnong yam roots and various tuber lilies as major forms of starch and carbohydrates ), and hunters and gatherers . Seasonal changes in the weather, availability of foods and other factors would determine where campsites were located, many near
742-652: The Flemington Racecourse is only metres down river from Pipemakers Park and Burndap Park, the river then meanders across the floodplain to its juncture with the Yarra River at Yarraville. The water quality of these estuarine reaches of the river is poor. Sediments show considerable pollution from past industrial activities and sewage discharge from the 20th century. Today, swimming is not recommended due to exposure to untreated sewage in run-off from these heavily urbanised areas. The geographic features and tributaries of
795-713: The Macedon Ranges , part of the Great Dividing Range . Formed by the confluence of the Jackson Creek and the Deep Creek below Taylors Lakes , the river flows generally southward, joined by two minor tributaries before reaching its confluence with the Yarra River at Yarraville , to eventually empty into Port Phillip. The river descends 42 metres (138 ft) over its 40-kilometre (25 mi) course . The head of
848-699: The Woiwurrung language group, in the Kulin alliance. The Woiwurrung people's territory in Central Victoria extended from north of the Great Dividing Range , east to Mount Baw Baw , south to Mordialloc Creek and to Mount Macedon , Sunbury and Gisborne in the west. Their lands bordered the Gunai /Kurnai people to the east in Gippsland , the Boon wurrung people to the south on the Mornington Peninsula , and
901-537: The short-finned eel , tupong, short-headed lamprey , Australian grayling , southern black bream , common galaxias , broad-finned galaxias and spotted galaxias . Starfish may also be found in the river. Introduced species include the red fox , European rabbit , and feral cat . While introduced birds include the song thrush , common blackbird , wild chantelle, common angie, common myna , common starling , house sparrow , spotted turtle dove , rock pigeon , and mallard . Common carp have also been introduced to
954-470: The traditional owners of the lands around the Yarra River. The meeting took place on the bank of a small stream, likely to be the Merri Creek and treaty documents were signed along with exchanges of goods by both sides. For a purchase price including tomahawks, knives, scissors, flannel jackets, red shirts and a yearly tribute of similar items, Batman obtained about 200,000 hectares (2,000 km ) around
1007-473: The 27 years following the foundation of Melbourne, the population of Woiworung and Boon wurrung language groups was reduced from 207 to 28 people. Many people were killed by diseases, including venereal disease, introduced by the Europeans. The birth rate also drastically declined for Woiwurrung and Boon wurrung with only five births between 1838 and 1848, while there were 52 deaths for the same period. William Thomas remarked in 1844 that "Infanticide I am persuaded
1060-505: The Bass Strait islands became separated from mainland Australia around 12,000 BP , when the sea level was approximately 50m below present levels. Port Phillip was flooded by post-glacial rising sea levels between 8,000 and 6,000 years ago. Oral history and creation stories from the Wathaurong , Woiwurrung and Boon wurrung languages describe the flooding of the bay. Hobsons Bay was once
1113-468: The Birrarung and its tributaries. Each of the various Woiwurrung tribes had its own distinct territory and the boundaries were usually determined by waterways. The clans included: The term Wurundjeri has become one of the common terms used today for descendants of all the Woiwurrung tribes, as they were forced together for the survival of their ethnic group. Their totems are Bundjil the eagle, and Waang
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#17328475334501166-414: The Birrarung, by other clans, was sometimes restricted depending on the state of the resource in question. For example; if a river or creek had been fished regularly throughout the fishing season and fish supplies were down, fishing was limited or stopped entirely by the clan who owned that resource until fish were given a chance to recover. During this time other resources were utilised for food. This ensured
1219-500: The British settlement at Sullivan Bay in 1803, near modern-day Sorrento, Victoria . William Buckley , a convict, escaped from this abortive settlement and lived for more than 30 years with the Wathaurong people before approaching John Batman's party in 1835. He told George Langhorne in 1836: I frequently entertained them (the Wada wurrung), when sitting around the campfires, with accounts of
1272-576: The English People, Houses, Ships – great guns etc. to which accounts they would listen with great attention – and express much astonishment. The Boon wurrung people, living primarily along the Port Philip and Western Port coast, were also subjected to raids on their camps by sealers from at least 1809 to as late as 1833, which were frequently violent with men being killed and the women being abducted and enslaved by sealers for sexual partners and taken to
1325-639: The Islands in Bass Strait where the sealers had their camps. This would have impacted the economic and social ties binding the Woiwurrung and Boon wurrung peoples. James Fleming, one of the party of Charles Grimes in HMS Cumberland who explored the Maribyrnong River and the Yarra River as far as Dights Falls in February 1803 reported smallpox scars on several Aboriginal people he met, indicating that
1378-533: The Maribyrnong River. The Organ Pipes National Park can be found adjacent to the Jackson Creek, near the Calder Freeway , with picnic facilities and a prominent display of basaltic columns a geological formation, so named because they look like organ pipes . Swimming occurs in these upper reaches of the river, but is not recommended. The river flows south and west. At Keilor the river winds back on itself in
1431-542: The Maribyrnong catchment is situated in the Macedon Ranges region of central Victoria around 60 kilometres (37 mi) northwest of Melbourne City Centre . Various creeks beginning in the southern Mount Macedon area flow into Riddells Creek which in turn flows into the Jackson Creek. The Jackson Creek starts its journey northwest of Gisborne , 50 kilometres (31 mi) north of Melbourne CBD. The other major tributary of
1484-452: The Maribyrnong is Deep Creek, which also has its headwaters in the northern and eastern parts of the Macedon Ranges. The creek has cut a deep valley through the surrounding basalt plains in its southward course, in particular as it flows through localities such as Konagaderra and Bulla . To the west of Melbourne Airport the tributaries of the Jackson Creek and the Deep Creek conjoin to form
1537-466: The Saltwater (Maribyrnong) River, and the furthest inland point of tidal influence. Batman is believed to have crossed the river at this point probably in the well worn steps of Aboriginals. It was for many years the only way from Melbourne to Geelong and land west. During the second half of the 19th century much of Melbourne's industry was located along the river, and the water became very degraded. With
1590-742: The Wurundjeri to settle. In August 1850 it is likely that the Woiwurrung requested land at Bulleen , but William Thomas , a Protector of Aborigines in Victoria, rejected their request as being too close to white settlement. In 1852 the Woiworrung gained 782 hectares along the Yarra at Warrandyte , while the Boon wurrung were allocated 340 hectares at Mordialloc Creek. These reserves were never staffed by whites and were not permanent camps, but acted as distribution depots where rations and blankets were distributed, with
1643-476: The Yarra River and Corio Bay. The total value of the goods has been estimated at about £100 in the value of the day. In return the Woiwurrung offered woven baskets of examples of their weaponry and two Possum-skin cloaks , a highly treasured item. After the treaty signing, a celebration took place with the Parramatta Aborigines with Batman's party dancing a corroboree . The treaty was significant as it
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1696-481: The best chances in this game. Some of them will leap as high as five feet from the ground to catch the ball. The person who secures the ball kicks it. This continues for hours and the natives never seem to tire of the exercise. The game was a favourite of the Woiwurrung clans and two teams were sometimes based on the traditional totemic moieties of Bunjil (eagle) and Waang (crow) of the Kulin people. Robert Brough-Smyth saw
1749-451: The ceremony of Tanderrum – freedom of the bush – would be performed. This allowed safe passage and temporary access and use of land and resources by foreign people. It was a diplomatic rite involving the landholder's hospitality and a ritual exchange of gifts. The Wurundjeri people were part of the Woiwurrung language group; each clan spoke a slight variation of the Woiwurrung language. Some basic terms include; The Woiwurrung people shared
1802-580: The closure of many industries since the 1960s and 1970s, much river front land has opened up to parkland and highly sought after residential estates. As the second major river in metropolitan Melbourne, the Maribyrnong plays a very important part in Melbourne's recreation. Boating , cycling along its bike paths such as the Maribyrnong River Trail, fishing, and walking . Light bushwalking can also be done and nature watchers can observe Australian native fauna such as echidna , wallabies as well as
1855-459: The country lost was refused. Coranderrk was closed in 1924, and its occupants barring five, who refused to leave Country were again moved to Lake Tyers in Gippsland . Communities consisted of six or more (depending on the extent of the territory) land-owning groups called clans that spoke a related language and were connected through cultural and mutual interests, totems, trading initiatives and marriage ties. Access to land and resources, such as
1908-467: The crow. Wurundjeri is a common recent name for people who have lived in the Woiwurrung area for up to 40,000 years, according to Gary Presland . They lived by fishing, hunting and gathering, and made a good living from the rich food sources of Port Phillip both before and after its flooding about 7,000–10,000 years ago, and the surrounding grasslands. At the Keilor Archaeological Site
1961-458: The game of Marn grook in 1841, according to Robert Brough-Smyth , in The Aborigines of Victoria (1878): The men and boys joyfully assemble when this game is to be played. One makes a ball of possum skin, somewhat elastic, but firm and strong. The players of this game do not throw the ball as a white man might do, but drop it and at the same time kicks it with his foot. The tallest men have
2014-508: The game played at Coranderrk Mission Station, where ngurungaeta William Barak discouraged the playing of imported games like cricket and encouraged the traditional native game of marn grook. There is some debate about whether the game influenced or was the origin of Australian Rules Football . As late as 1862 the Woiwurrung Aboriginal people were "often seen in their possum skin coats, armed with spears, and retreating mainly to
2067-451: The intention being to keep the tribes away from the growing settlement of Melbourne. The Aboriginal Protection Board revoked these two reserves in 1862 and 1863, considering them then too close to Melbourne. The Woiwurrung and Boon Wurrong people bore the brunt of the effects of British settlement in the Foundation of Melbourne from 1835 onwards, with the population declining rapidly. In
2120-503: The land, and individuals could only acquire it through distribution by the Crown. Derrimut , an arweet of the Boon wurrung informed the early European settlers in October 1835 of an impending attack by "up-country people". The colonists armed themselves, and the attack was averted. Benbow from the Boon wurrung and Billibellary , from the Wurundjeri, also acted to protect the colonists in what
2173-462: The police corps failed to stop troopers participating in tribal ceremonies, gatherings and rituals. In 1863, the surviving members of the Woiwurrung tribes and speakers were given "permissive occupancy" of Coranderrk Station, near Healesville and forcibly resettled. Despite numerous petitions, letters, and delegations to the Colonial and Federal Government, the grant of this land in compensation for
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2226-452: The proposal was important for its success, and after deliberation he backed the initiative and even proposed himself for enlistment, but resigned after about a year when he found that it was to be used to capture and even kill other natives. He did his best from then to undermine the Corps and as a result many native troopers deserted and few remained longer than three or four years. Participation in
2279-513: The region of southern Victoria and on to the land bridge of the Bassian plain to Tasmania by at least 35,000 years ago. During the Ice Age about 20,000 years BP , the area now known as Port Phillip would have been dry land, and the Yarra and Werribee river would have joined to flow through the heads then south and south west through the Bassian plain before meeting the ocean to the west. Tasmania and
2332-407: The river are listed below, tributaries in bold: The river was initially named Saltwater River by early settlers, due to the tidal nature of its lower reaches. The name Maribyrnong however, is derived from either mirring-gnay-bir-nong which in Woiwurrung , the language of the local Wurundjeri people, is said to mean "I can hear a ringtail possum" or "saltwater river" ( Gunung or Gunnung
2385-621: The river is not permitted downstream of the Canning Street bridge in Avondale Heights. The river becomes esturarine as it flows through Avondale Heights. At Maribyrnong, Melbourne's Living Museum of the West presents information on the history of the river and the early industrial history of the site. Dolphins are sometimes sighted in the lower reaches of the river, along with many water birds, especially at Burndap Park. Footscray Park opposite
2438-517: The river to near its confluence with the Yarra River in Footscray . At Avondale Heights and Essendon West residents have views over the river valley to the skyscrapers of the Melbourne CBD. Up until this area, the Maribyrnong is unusual in being one of the few large basaltic streams in Victoria. The Maribyrnong is a freshwater river as far downstream as Solomon's Ford, Avondale Heights. Swimming in
2491-668: The river. The Maribyrnong River faces various environmental issues, apart from introduced pest species, also pollution and contamination – arsenic and heavy metals from industry and litter including one trap to mitigate litter entering the river from stormwater. Today, industrial pollution still occurs due to poor chemical handling practices, improper storage, and dilapidated infrastructure. Continued land development for housing causes soil disturbance resulting in increased river turbidity. Woiwurrung The Woiwurrung , also spelt Woi-wurrung, Woi Wurrung , Woiwurrong , Woiworung , and Wuywurung , are an Aboriginal Australian people of
2544-448: The river. Native reptile species include eastern brown snakes , tiger snakes , skinks , and common snakeneck turtles . Native birds include the eastern whipbird , cockatoo , rainbow lorikeet , galah , brown falcon , peregrine falcon , square-tailed kite , royal spoonbill , black swan , Pacific black duck , little pied cormorant , moorhen , and long-billed corella . There are various native frogs and native fish species include
2597-524: The same belief system as other Kulin nation territories, based on a creative epoch known as the Dreamtime which stretches back into a remote era in history when the creator ancestors known as the First Peoples travelled across the land, creating and naming as they went. Indigenous Australia's oral tradition and religious values are based upon reverence for the land and a belief in this Dreamtime. The Dreaming
2650-507: The sustained use of the resources available to them. As with most other Kulin territories, penalties such as spearings were enforced upon trespassers. Today, traditional clan locations, language groups and borders are no longer in use and descendants of Woiwurrung Tribes including the Wurundjeri tribe people live within modern day society. It is generally considered that before European settlement, six separate clans existed: When foreign people passed through or were invited onto Woiwurrung lands
2703-419: The ubiquitous possums and flying foxes . Road and rail bridges and other crossing points along the Maribyrnong River include: Many native species exist along the Maribyrnong River with many species thriving in the area. Native mammals include swamp wallabies , grey-headed flying foxes , common brushtail possums , common ringtail possums , water rats , echidnas , and platypus in the upper reaches of
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#17328475334502756-630: The unsold hill north of Collingwood where they camped with their dogs, played football with a possum-skin ball and fought with other Aborigines", according to researchers McFarlane and Roberts, reported on in the Herald Sun. There are a number of significant sites, in particular those found near the Yarra & Maribyrnong Rivers and the Merri Creek where corroborees were held between clans and perhaps neighbouring territories to share in music and dance, exchange news and trade. Other places of significance for
2809-520: Was the first and only documented time when European settlers negotiated their presence and occupation of Aboriginal lands. The Treaty was immediately repudiated by the colonial government in Sydney. The 1835 proclamation by Governor Richard Bourke implemented the doctrine of terra nullius upon which British settlement was based, reinforcing the concept that there was no land owner before British possession and that Aboriginal people could not sell or assign
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