"Memories of Living Outside Walgett" consists of panels of information provided by 12 Elders of their memories of living in three of the tin camps and the Walgett Aboriginal Station, outside the town of Walgett from the 1930s until the early 1950s. Gladys Walford and Vera Dennis, both DEG Elders Councillors in their 80s contributed the gems of the exhibition - four mudmaps made from their memories of where every Aboriginal family lived. NSW State Records had deposited with the DEG in the previous year, all files from the Chief Secretary about the building of the new "Walgett Aboriginal Station" and these are on display in the exhibition as well, along with all the files relating to the closure of the Angledool Aboriginal Station in 1936. Mrs Walford and Mrs Dennis were able to check their memories against files written by the NSW Aborigines Protection Board listing people it thought were living in the camps. They found where mistakes and assumptions had been made about visitors and "blow-throughs" and compiled definitive maps of where they remember people lived. This exhibition includes photos taken of the new houses built at "Walgett Aboriginal Station" (now Gingie Village) in 1941, courtesy of NSW State Records. In July 2004 DEG member (now deceased) Margaret Rose had identified these photos in the NSW State Records Kingswood archive where they had lain unlabelled and unidentified previously.
NSW Barwon MP Kevin Humphries flew in to launch DEG's third cultural exhibition during the December '10 floods when Walgett was isolated by road. He was presented with DEG's "Dharriwaa Elders Group Respect" T-shirt which he said he would wear. DEG's Speaker Richard Lake welcomed visitors to the exhibition and Mrs Walford and Mrs Dennis spoke about why working on the exhibition was important for them. Exhibition producer Wendy Spencer explained that she felt priviledged to help the Elders pass on their cultural knowledge, which is one of the main aims of the DEG. She also encouraged school and other groups wishing to visit the exhibition to make appointments so they can benefit from the added value of the Elders themselves explaining the content.
Walgett's first Aboriginal cultural exhibition space was launched by the Dharriwaa Elders Group 9 August 2008, with the "In Living Memory" exhibition of NSW Aboriginal Welfare Board photos and files from NSW State Records.
The Dharriwaa Elders Group's second cultural exhibition "Wugan Gaay" or wood story, was launched in August 2009. It consisted of a compilation of photos of wooden items from the Walgett area that are stored in the Australian Museum. This exhibition brought back to the Walgett Aboriginal community evidence of the highly developed cultural skills of Aboriginal men in the region, and of designs unique to this area. These photos were supplemented in December 2009, with a display of a full set of wooden weapons that had been donated to the Dharriwaa Elders Group by elder Roy Barker. The DEG had gratefully received funds from the Commonwealth Government's "Community Capability Fund" to purchase two glass display cabinets in November 2009, so that these precious objects could be displayed to the community. So Wugan Gaay presents now a comprehensive overview of wooden weapons produced in the Walgett area to provide local Aboriginal craftsmen and artists with the knowledge of designs and shapes, to produce ongoing cultural production. Elders Gladys Walford and Virginia Robinson welcomed visitors to the launch in August 2009 and spoke of their pride in presenting the exhibition, and the spiritual benefits of seeing and knowing more about the work of their ancestors. Ruben Allas represented the exhibition's funding body, Regional Arts NSW at the launch and made a speech about why the COmmonwealth had chosen to support the DEG's exhibition. The exhibition producer Wendy Spencer read out a letter produced by original members (now deceased) of the Dharriwaa Elders Group that stated their aims for the research that led to this exhibition.
Dharriwaa Elders Group developed its cultural exhibition centre in recognition of the needs identified by the DEG, the Walgett Shire Council, the NSW and Commonwealth governments for:
- public awareness of local Aboriginal culture; and
- to create an economic opportunity for the Walgett Aboriginal community;
- to provide the fora for Walgett Aboriginal elders to inform younger generations about their identity.
 
Left: Walgett students are shown the In Living Memory exhibition (launched in August 2009) by George Rose, whose mother and aunt feature in the photos. Right: Visiting Pilliga elders were engrossed in the files on display for "In Living Memory".
 
Left: Dharriwaa Elders Group Speaker George Rose shows students the photos of his mother and aunt. Right: George shows visiting Coonamble elders photos of Kinchela Boys Home, where he was imprisoned in the 1930s as a child.
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Left: DEG Elders Councillors Vera Dennis and Gladys Walford are thanked with flowers at the exhibition launch by DEG Speaker Richard Lake, for their work preparing the exhibition "Memories of Living Outside Walgett". Right: Visitors to the exhibition launch engrossed in the new exhibition's content in December 2010.
Above: The title panel for DEG's exhibition "Memories of Living Outside Walgett" - an exhibition capturing the memories of DEG Elders about life in Walgett before Aboriginal people lived in the town.
 
Left: DEG's Gladys Walford welcomes visitors to the launch of DEG's exhibition of Roy Barker's weapons in December 2009. Right: The DEG cabinet display of Roy Barker's full set of warrior's weapons now displayed at the Dharriwaa Elders Group exhibition space as part of its "Wugan Gaay" permanent exhibition.
Above: Walgett Community School teacher Daniel Robins, always supportive of the DEG's aims, showing students part of the Wugan Gaay exhibition. Other DEG exhibits are also visible eg copies of Aboriginal Protection Board files relating to the closure of Angledool Aboriginal Station in 1936, and the DEG's prizewinning banner to promote literacy and DEG's Yundiboo magazine.
Above: Dharriwaa Elders Group launched its cultural exhibition "wugan gaay" of wooden weapons from Walgett stored in the Australian Museum, 14 August 2009.
If you wish to contact the Dharriwaa Elders Group write to
PO Box 174 Walgett NSW 2832, phone: 02 6828 2619
or email info@dharriwaaeldersgroup.org.au | All donations will be very gratefully received |
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