James Brown and hutkeeper allegedly kill 9 Aboriginal People on Avenue Range station, September 1848

Date: 1 Sep 1848
Place: Avenue Range (Keilera) Station
Sometime between September and November 1848, nine Aboriginal people, comprising old men, women and children were killed on Avenue Range Station, and an attempt made to burn their bodies. Investigations by the Protector of Aborigines led him to believe that they had been shot by the station owner, James Brown, and his hutkeeper, Eastwood. James Brown was charged with murder, but Eastwood fled the colony. Attempts to secure witnesses were unsuccessful and the case against Brown was dropped.
(See 'The South Australian Frontier and its Legacies' for more details.)
Notes:
LocationAccuracy: Approximate

People involved

  • Leandermin (Aboriginal witness)
    Match note: Matched from legacy people.event_external_id to resolved_event.tlcm_id, mainly data from SA Frontier and its Legacies project.

Sources

Event mentions

  • James Brown and hutkeeper allegedly kill 9 Aboriginal People on Avenue Range station, September 1848
    1 Sep 1848 — Avenue Range (Keilera) Station
    Sometime between September and November 1848, nine Aboriginal people, comprising old men, women and children were killed on Avenue Range Station, and an attempt made to burn their bodies. Investigations by the Protector of Aborigines led him to believe that they had been shot by the station owner, James Brown, and his hutkeeper, Eastwood. James Brown was charged with murder, but Eastwood fled the colony. Attempts to secure witnesses were unsuccessful and the case against Brown was dropped.
    (See 'The South Australian Frontier and its Legacies' for more details.)
    Source: Robert Foster, Skye Krichauff and Amanda Nettelbeck, The South Australian Frontier and its Legacies, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, 2024, http://ua.edu.au/south-australian-frontier