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From Dispossession to Display: Authenticity, Aboriginality and the Queensland Museum, C. 1862-1917

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From Dispossession to Display: Authenticity, Aboriginality and the Queensland Museum, C. 1862-1917 From Dispossession to Display: Authenticity, Aboriginality and the Queensland Museum, c.1862-1917 Gemmia Burden BA (Hons) A thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at The University of Queensland in 2017 School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry Abstract This thesis examines the institutional construction of Aboriginality in the Queensland Museum from c.1862-1917. Tracing the history of the Museum through its collection, interpretation and use of Aboriginal cultural materials, it unpacks the ways in which knowledges of Aboriginal people and their culture were constructed and disseminated in the colonial setting. The thesis argues that by situating Brisbane as the colonial core and regional / remote Queensland as the periphery, the Museum’s influence on the development of the concept of Aboriginality in Queensland was aligned with the realities of frontier and post-frontier colonial society. While the scientific development of theories concerning human history ran parallel to this, in settler-colonial society it was experiences of the frontier and the appropriation of land that was the main imperative underpinning the collection and use of material culture and ancestral remains. The collection and display of cultural materials was directly linked to the changing nature of the frontier. Aboriginal people and their culture were collected and projected as both frontier aggressors and natural victims of the spread of civilisation. Despite this broad shift, the meanings attached to the collection were stabilised through the twin concepts of authenticity and extinction, key ideas that framed not just the interpretations of the collections, but also what and from where items and objects were acquired. The construction of Aboriginality in the Museum was not achieved in isolation. It was dependent on the materials and information that arrived in Brisbane from various individuals across the state – almost all of the material came from external collectors – police, missionaries, protectors, government agents, station managers, journalists. Although this disparate group were temporally and spatially varied, there are a number of continuities that thread them together: their amateurism, their locations in remote/regional Queensland and their employment of the concepts of authenticity and extinction in their collecting. Through its key collecting networks of police and protectors, the Museum became not just the focal point for the articulation of Aboriginality, but also a passive agent in the dispossession of Aboriginal people, positioning itself as part of the administrative field that policed and protected Queensland’s Aboriginal population across the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Integral to the Museum’s construction of Aboriginality was its displays. It was through the exhibits that the visiting public viewed and consumed the Museum’s articulation of Aboriginal people and their culture. The displays themselves reflect the changing perceptions of Aboriginal people in a frontier (violent) and post-frontier (evolutionary inferiority) setting. This culminated in the early i twentieth century with the unveiling of the Aboriginal camp diorama that showcased Aboriginal people as ‘relics of the past’, remaining unchanged in the Museum for over seventy years. The institutional construction of Aboriginality sits at several points of intersection between the colonial government, its institutions, curators, agents, administrators, colonists and missionaries. The history of the development of Aboriginality and perceptions of Aboriginal people is found within specific social contexts and individual experiences of the disparate people contributing to the movement of material and information across the state. ii Declaration by author This thesis is composed of my original work, and contains no material previously published or written by another person except where due reference has been made in the text. I have clearly stated the contribution by others to jointly-authored works that I have included in my thesis. I have clearly stated the contribution of others to my thesis as a whole, including statistical assistance, survey design, data analysis, significant technical procedures, professional editorial advice, and any other original research work used or reported in my thesis. The content of my thesis is the result of work I have carried out since the commencement of my research higher degree candidature and does not include a substantial part of work that has been submitted to qualify for the award of any other degree or diploma in any university or other tertiary institution. I have clearly stated which parts of my thesis, if any, have been submitted to qualify for another award. I acknowledge that an electronic copy of my thesis must be lodged with the University Library and, subject to the policy and procedures of The University of Queensland, the thesis be made available for research and study in accordance with the Copyright Act 1968 unless a period of embargo has been approved by the Dean of the Graduate School. I acknowledge that copyright of all material contained in my thesis resides with the copyright holder(s) of that material. Where appropriate I have obtained copyright permission from the copyright holder to reproduce material in this thesis. iii Publications during candidature ‘’A Centre of Scientific Work’: Ronald Hamlyn-Harris and Ethnography at the Queensland Museum, 1910-17’, Journal of Australian Studies, 38, 2014, pp. 87-102. Publications included in this thesis No publications included. Contributions by others to the thesis No contributions by others. Statement of parts of the thesis submitted to qualify for the award of another degree None. iv Acknowledgements This thesis has gone through many changes and iterations over the past six years. It has brought with it ups and downs, it has been both personally confronting and personally confirming. I would not have managed to get through it without the help, support and friendship of many individuals. Firstly, I’d like to acknowledge my supervisors. Paul Turnbull oversaw the formative development of this work, and although the end product is vastly different from its initial conception, I thank him for his early advice and feedback. Geoff Ginn has been involved with this project since its inception, having supervised my Honours thesis, which this work has extended upon. Geoff has offered frank advice, criticism, encouragement and support for which I am ever grateful. Lisa Featherstone came on board as a supervisor towards the final push, overseeing the last year of furious drafting. It was under her guidance that my aims and intentions were solidified, and what felt like patchy yet important ideas morphed into a workable thesis. I am so very grateful for Lisa’s professional advice and feedback, but above all her constant encouragement, reassurance, optimism, mentorship and support. I would also like to thank other professional and academic staff, at UQ and beyond, for their support, encouragement and job opportunities over the last six years. Sarah Pinto, Patrick Jory, Libby Connors and Yorick Smaal. Bill Metcalf for ALWAYS asking about the thesis, and Judy King, whose support went well above and beyond. I would like to acknowledge the assistance and advice of the staff at the Fryer Library, Queensland State Archives and above all, the Queensland Museum, in particular Dave Parkhill and Leonie Coghill. Writing a doctoral thesis is isolating and challenging. Having a strong cohort for friendship and support is vital. There have been many postgrad students at HAPI who have helped along the way. Most importantly I’d like to thank Kate Ariotti, Alana Piper, Ana Stevenson and Jon Piccini for their friendships. To say this wouldn’t have eventuated without you guys seems somewhat of a cliché, but clichés are generally grounded in truth. It has been a pleasure experiencing this rollercoaster with you. Thank you to Ben Gall and Ann Crook for their encouragement, support and patience. In particular, I am enormously grateful to Ann for generously giving up her time to read drafts and copy edit, offering valuable and insightful advice. v To my friends, family and colleagues who have helped in numerous ways – support, encouragement, babysitting, laughs, listening – but above all, friendship. Deb, Bee & Don, Jem, Drew & Deb, Angela, Bella, Chiné, Linda, Juliana, Karen, David, Charene, Yolande and Katie. Thanks to my family, in particular Nana & Grandad, Mum, Kit and especially Cindi for her unending kindness and encouragement. Thanks must go to Louie for his contributions. Most of all, thanks to Paige. vi Keywords Aboriginal, museum, Queensland, ethnology, anthropology, collecting, displays, authenticity, nineteenth century, twentieth century Australian and New Zealand Standard Research Classifications (ANZSRC) ANZSCR Code: 201301, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander History, 40% ANZSCR Code: 201303, Australian History (Excl. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander History), 60% Fields of Research (FoR) Classification FoR code: 2103: Historical Studies, 100% vii TABLE OF CONTENTS List of Figures .................................................................................................................................... ix List of Tables ....................................................................................................................................... x List of Abbreviations .........................................................................................................................
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