Massacre at Victoria River (2)

Date: 1 Jun 1900 – 30 Jun 1900
Place: Victoria River (2)
Event type: massacre
Direct violence: Yes

An undated index card from the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons in London reads: '20.1601; 1028.1 - skull and femora, male. 20.1062; 1028.2 ... skull and femora, male. Natives of the NW Territory of Australia, near the Victoria River, shot early in 1900 in a punitive expedition, in which forty natives male and female were killed. They live sometimes on the coast, sometimes inland; white traders make no irregular unions with their women, so the race remains pure. (For other details of tribe see letters).' 'Pres by Dr Arthur J Gedge 1920' [but the cranium says 1921]. '(Accompanying these remains are glass & stone arrowheads made by them, and sharp oval stones used for an operation on many of the males).' Dr Arthur Gedge does not appear to have been in Australia. The British Medical Journal of 16 September 1927 (p 475) records that he died in London on 16 August 1927.

Notes:
CorroborationRating: *
LanguageGroup: Allura or Ngarinyman
Victims: Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander People
VictimsDead: 40

People involved

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Sources

Event mentions

  • Massacre at Victoria River (2)
    1 Jun 1900 – 30 Jun 1900 — Victoria River (2) — massacre

    An undated index card from the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons in London reads: '20.1601; 1028.1 - skull and femora, male. 20.1062; 1028.2 ... skull and femora, male. Natives of the NW Territory of Australia, near the Victoria River, shot early in 1900 in a punitive expedition, in which forty natives male and female were killed. They live sometimes on the coast, sometimes inland; white traders make no irregular unions with their women, so the race remains pure. (For other details of tribe see letters).' 'Pres by Dr Arthur J Gedge 1920' [but the cranium says 1921]. '(Accompanying these remains are glass & stone arrowheads made by them, and sharp oval stones used for an operation on many of the males).' Dr Arthur Gedge does not appear to have been in Australia. The British Medical Journal of 16 September 1927 (p 475) records that he died in London on 16 August 1927.

    Source:

    Royal College of Surgeons Archive, MS number RCS-MUS/7/8 (undated) http://surgicat.rcseng.ac.uk/Details/archive/110003808; British Medical Journal, 10 September 1927, p 475: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2524749/pdf/brmedj08291-0039b.pdf; Canberra Times, 21 November 1988, p 1: https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/110615322