Massacre at Milly, Brodribb River
On 2 May 1851, station cook Dan Moylan at Macleod's station at Orbost abducted a young girl from the Krauatungalang people, tied her up and over the following three days, raped her. Her people tried to rescue her but Moylan kept them at bay with his gun and the hot coals he scattered around the outside of the hut. Eventually they killed Moylan with spears, rescued the girl and burnt down his hut. News of Moylan's killing quickly spread through the white community. According to Pepper and De Araugo, (1985, pp 99-101) the settlers took the law into their own hands, and with the assistance of Aboriginal warriors from the Mitchell River, tracked Moylan's killers to Milly Creek where it runs into the Brodribb River. There they 'cleaned up the tribe' but two boys including Harry Darramungie were lucky to get away and others swam the Snowy River to Lake Watt Watt. However the settlers followed them to Buchan where more white men joined the party and eventually found their prey camped near The Pyramids. They then drove the Aboriginal people over the cliffs to the Murrindal River below and their remains are believed to lie at the base of Limestone Cliff.
Notes:
CorroborationRating: *
LanguageGroup: Krauatungalang
Victims: Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander People
VictimsDead: 15
CorroborationRating: *
LanguageGroup: Krauatungalang
Victims: Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander People
VictimsDead: 15
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Event mentions
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Massacre at Milly, Brodribb River2 May 1851 – 31 May 1851 — Milly, Brodribb River — massacreOn 2 May 1851, station cook Dan Moylan at Macleod's station at Orbost abducted a young girl from the Krauatungalang people, tied her up and over the following three days, raped her. Her people tried to rescue her but Moylan kept them at bay with his gun and the hot coals he scattered around the outside of the hut. Eventually they killed Moylan with spears, rescued the girl and burnt down his hut. News of Moylan's killing quickly spread through the white community. According to Pepper and De Araugo, (1985, pp 99-101) the settlers took the law into their own hands, and with the assistance of Aboriginal warriors from the Mitchell River, tracked Moylan's killers to Milly Creek where it runs into the Brodribb River. There they 'cleaned up the tribe' but two boys including Harry Darramungie were lucky to get away and others swam the Snowy River to Lake Watt Watt. However the settlers followed them to Buchan where more white men joined the party and eventually found their prey camped near The Pyramids. They then drove the Aboriginal people over the cliffs to the Murrindal River below and their remains are believed to lie at the base of Limestone Cliff.