One expects stories of colonisation to be stories of exclusion and deprivation, whereby the colonist excludes the original inhabitants of the land from resources they have managed - in Australia's case, for millennia. So I was surprised in my search for information about bunya nuts to discover this proclamation.
Colonial Secretary's Office,
Sydney, 14th April, 1842.
It having been represented to the GOVERNOR that a District exists to the Northward of Moreton Bay, in which a fruit-bearing Tree abounds, called Bunya, or Banya Bunya, and that the Aborigines from considerable distances resort at certain times of the year to this District for the purpose of eating the fruit of the said Tree : —His Excellency is pleased to direct that no Licenses be granted for the occupation of any lands within the said District in which the Bunya or Banya Bunya Tree is found. And notice is hereby given, that the several Crown Commissioners in the New England and Moreton Bay Districts have been instructed to remove any person who may be in the unauthorised occupation of Land whereon the said Bunya or Banya Bunya Trees are to be found. His Excellency has also directed that no Licenses to cut Timber be granted within the said Districts.
By His Excellence's Command,E. DEAS THOMSON.
The declaration appears in the Government Gazette at least 4 times and is republished in a number of newspapers, The New South Wales Examiner, The Sydney Herald, The Colonial Observer, Australasian Chronicle, The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser, The Australian, Sydney Free Press, Port Phillip Patriot and Melbourne Advertiser (see sources below).
Less surprising is that the declaration was rescinded. The 1842 Bunya proclamation was issued under the New South Wales colonial government and remained in place during the New South Wales administration of the district. The restriction was effectively removed after the creation of the colony of Queensland in 1859, when legislation such as the Unoccupied Crown Lands Occupation Act 1860 opened the bunya districts to pastoral leases and timber cutting.
I am still left with the question of who made 'representation'; my best guess at the moment is that it was probably the German Missionaries who seem to have had a genuine concern for the welfare of the Aboriginal people of South East Queensland - see my post, The indictments of Dalinkua and Dalipia 1858 - 1859. There was discussion with the governor about allowable locations for the establishment of a mission at the time of the declaration.
Thanks to the State Library of Queensland's "Ask a Librarian" service for assistance with this post.
Sources (in date order):
Government Gazette Notices (1842, April 19). New South Wales Government Gazette (Sydney, NSW : 1832 - 1900), p. 587. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article230662002
(Also on 22, 26, 29 April 1842)
NEWS OF THE DAY. (1842, April 20). The New South Wales Examiner (Sydney, NSW : 1842), p. 3. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article228247835
DOMESTIC INTELLIGENCE. (1842, April 20). The Sydney Herald (NSW : 1831 - 1842), p. 2. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article28651847
NEW ZEALAND. (1842, April 20). The Colonial Observer (Sydney, NSW : 1841 - 1844), p. 228. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article226362390
Government Gazette. (1842, April 21). Australasian Chronicle (Sydney, NSW : 1839 - 1843), p. 3. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article31735665
Cricket Match. (1842, April 21). The Sydney Gazette and New South Wales Advertiser (NSW : 1803 - 1842), p. 2. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article2556299
SYDNEY COLLEGE. (1842, April 21). The Australian (Sydney, NSW : 1824 - 1848), p. 2. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article37116881
INSOLVENT ESTATES COURT. (1842, April 21). Sydney Free Press (NSW : 1841 - 1842), p. 2. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article226358866
SYDNEY NEWS. (1842, June 2). Port Phillip Patriot and Melbourne Advertiser (Vic. : 1839 - 1845), p. 4. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article226511925
Image source:
OUT IN THE OPEN : Nature Study For The Schools (1934, November 3). Weekly Times (Melbourne, Vic. : 1869 - 1954), p. 26. Retrieved May 16, 2026, from http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article224394841
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