La Grange expedition facts for kids
The La Grange expedition was a journey in 1865 to an area near Lagrange Bay in the Kimberley region of Western Australia. This expedition, led by Maitland Brown, first aimed to find three settlers who had gone missing from an earlier trip.
Sadly, the three men were found dead. They had been attacked and killed by Aboriginal people, some seemingly while they were asleep. Later, during a long and debated conflict, between six and twenty Aboriginal people were also killed by members of the expedition. This event is often called the La Grange Massacre, though people still discuss if that name is fair.
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Why the Expedition Happened
In 1864, an earlier trip was made to check a story about a convict named Henry Wildman. He claimed to have found gold near Camden Harbour. No gold was found, but the explorers discovered good land for farming animals. Because of this, a small farm was later set up at Roebuck Bay.
In November 1864, three settlers named Frederick Panter, James Harding, and William Goldwyer left this farm. They went to explore the land around La Grange Bay. They only had enough supplies for two or three weeks. When they didn't come back after three weeks, another settler, Lockier Burges, went to look for them. He followed their tracks to a mangrove swamp near La Grange, but then lost their trail.
When news of the missing men reached the government in Perth, a search party was quickly put together. Maitland Brown was chosen to lead it. Some people thought Aboriginal people might have killed the three men. There were even calls for their deaths to be "avenged." For this reason, some people saw the expedition as a mission to punish those responsible.
The Search for the Missing Men
A boat called the Clarence Packet was hired. The search party, including Maitland Brown, David Francisco, and Lockier Burges, left Fremantle on February 16, 1865. On February 25, the boat stopped at the De Grey River. The group visited a nearby farm to ask about the missing men, but there was no news.
The party then waited for nearly two weeks for an Aboriginal man named Dutchmanchum. He was said to speak the language of the local tribes and was needed to guide the group. When Dutchmanchum was found, he told a story. He said three white men had been attacked and killed at a river called Boola Boola near La Grange Bay. Over the next few days, other Aboriginal people confirmed his story.
On March 13, the party sailed to Roebuck Bay. Four days later, Brown and some of his group captured five more Aboriginal people. These individuals also confirmed Dutchmanchum's story. One of them, Lear-a-ban, said that some of the people involved in the killings were camped near Cape Latouche Treville. Brown then decided to find them.
Brown's actions towards the Aboriginal people he met had been harsh. He wrote in his journal that he was ready to arrest any Aboriginal people he thought were guilty. He also hoped that if guilty people resisted, it would justify "exterminating them."
The Clarence Packet was sent to Cape Latouche Treville. Brown's group started walking there on March 27. They captured three more Aboriginal people that day, and a large group the next day. Brown believed some of these men were involved in the attack. He sent ten of them onto the ship. One of them, Karimba, said he could lead the search party to the bodies of the murdered men. However, after leading them to Boola Boola, he refused to show them more. He led them back and forth through thick bushes for most of a day. Karimba also managed to call out to another Aboriginal person to bring men to rescue him. Soon, the search party found themselves being followed by a large group of armed Aboriginal people.
Eventually, Karimba was sent to the ship. Two other Aboriginal people, who were thought to be involved in the killings, were brought ashore to act as guides. These guides led the party directly to where the killings had happened. The three white settlers were found dead. Two of them, Panter and Harding, had clearly been attacked and killed in their sleep. They still had handkerchiefs tied over their eyes. It was harder to tell how Goldwyer died, but there were no signs of a struggle. The dead men's journals showed they had been in several fights with Aboriginal people and expected more trouble.
Brown had the bodies wrapped up to be taken to the ship. While this was happening, the two guides tried to escape. They were shot and killed by Tommy, one of the Aboriginal assistants with Brown's party.
The La Grange Massacre
Instead of going back to the ship, the expedition kept exploring the area. Brown called this "further exploration." However, most experts now agree that the evidence suggests it was a mission to punish the Aboriginal people. In fact, one of the plaques on the Maitland Brown Memorial clearly calls the group a "punitive party."
On April 6, 1865, Brown's group got into a fight with a large group of Aboriginal people. Most stories say Brown's party walked into a surprise attack. But at least one story says they attacked an Aboriginal camp. No matter how it started, the result is clear: at least six, and possibly as many as twenty, Aboriginal people were killed. The expedition party did not suffer any injuries.
What Happened Next
The search party returned to Perth in May 1865. Panter, Harding, and Goldwyer were given a public funeral. It was the biggest funeral ever seen in Western Australia at the time. About 750 people were in the funeral procession, and thousands of people watched along the streets. The men were buried at the East Perth Cemetery.
Maitland Brown was praised by the public. People celebrated him for finding the men and for "avenging" their deaths. Many settlers even felt that the punishment Brown gave to the "murderers" was "utterly inadequate" (not enough). However, the English Government thought that "force had been exercised towards the [Aboriginal people] without sufficient warranty" (without enough reason). They urged the need to keep friendly relations with the local Aboriginal people.
Maitland Brown died in 1904 and was buried at Karrakatta Cemetery. But in 1911, his remains were moved and reburied with Panter, Harding, and Goldwyer at East Perth. Soon after, a sculptor named Pietro Porcelli was asked to create a memorial for Brown. This became the Maitland Brown Memorial. It is a bronze statue of Brown's head and shoulders on a granite base. Plaques on the base show only the murdered colonists and describe how they died.
In the 1990s, people realized the monument was biased (only showed one side of the story). Another plaque was added to describe the events from the point of view of the Aboriginal people. However, the original biased parts of the monument were left in place.
See also
- Explorers' Monument
- List of massacres of indigenous Australians
