Massacre at Aire River Estuary, Cape Otway

Date: 1 Aug 1846 – 2 Aug 1846
Place: Aire River Estuary, Cape Otway
Event type: massacre
Direct violence: Yes
In July 1846, surveyor George Smythe was hired to conduct a coastal survey of the Otway Ranges. Having established a base camp on the eastern shore of Cape Otway at Blanket Bay, Smythe and four others in the party marched westward towards the Aire River and when they returned to Blanket Bay six days later, they found that another member of the party, James Conroy, 'had been barbarously murdered' with a tomahawk 'about 200 yards from the tent, where he had gone to cut wood' (GA & SA, August 8, 1846, p 2). Conroy had been visited by some Gadubanud people earlier in the day and it appears he had tried to abduct an Aboriginal woman, and had been killed for his efforts. Smythe and the party buried Conroy's body and made their way back to Geelong and then to Melbourne where Smyth informed Superintendent La Trobe of the incident. Smythe then organised a punitive expedition to avenge Conroy's death, comprising 'a heavily armed posse' (Cannon, 1990, p 147) of pastoralists and stockmen, probably on horseback, and an 'armed detachment of the Barrabool tribe', employed 'under the sanction of government' (Niewojt, 2010, p 201). The party tracked down a group of the Badubanud camped on the opposite bank of the Aire river estuary. Early the following morning, the Barrabool were sent in to attack the Badubanud camp and promptly killed the chief and several women and children. Reports of the numbers killed range from eight to twenty.
Notes:
CorroborationRating: ***
LanguageGroup: Gadubanud
Victims: Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander People
VictimsDead: 8

People involved

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Sources

Event mentions

  • Massacre at Aire River Estuary, Cape Otway
    1 Aug 1846 – 2 Aug 1846 — Aire River Estuary, Cape Otway — massacre
    In July 1846, surveyor George Smythe was hired to conduct a coastal survey of the Otway Ranges. Having established a base camp on the eastern shore of Cape Otway at Blanket Bay, Smythe and four others in the party marched westward towards the Aire River and when they returned to Blanket Bay six days later, they found that another member of the party, James Conroy, 'had been barbarously murdered' with a tomahawk 'about 200 yards from the tent, where he had gone to cut wood' (GA & SA, August 8, 1846, p 2). Conroy had been visited by some Gadubanud people earlier in the day and it appears he had tried to abduct an Aboriginal woman, and had been killed for his efforts. Smythe and the party buried Conroy's body and made their way back to Geelong and then to Melbourne where Smyth informed Superintendent La Trobe of the incident. Smythe then organised a punitive expedition to avenge Conroy's death, comprising 'a heavily armed posse' (Cannon, 1990, p 147) of pastoralists and stockmen, probably on horseback, and an 'armed detachment of the Barrabool tribe', employed 'under the sanction of government' (Niewojt, 2010, p 201). The party tracked down a group of the Badubanud camped on the opposite bank of the Aire river estuary. Early the following morning, the Barrabool were sent in to attack the Badubanud camp and promptly killed the chief and several women and children. Reports of the numbers killed range from eight to twenty.
    Source: Geelong Advertiser and Squatter's Advocate, August 8, 1846, p 2http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article94443347 August 26, 1846 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article94446886 and August 29, 1846 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article94444706; Cannon, 1990, p 147; Niewojt, 2010, pp 193-213.