First Nations Materials

For centuries, the Albury-Wodonga area was known as Bungambrawatha, or 'Homeland', by the Wiradjuri people. It wasn't until 1838, when the Assistant Surveyor General decided that 'Albury' sounded more familiar to the British settlers' ears, that the name was changed. Wodonga, meaning 'bulrushes', still retains its Aboriginal name.

As a massive water system in a huge dry land, the Murray was and remains a powerful source of life. For this reason, the Wiradjuri were frequently joined by many other hunting groups from the surrounding mountains and flatlands, who would travel hundreds of kilometres to gather here, establishing an important place for meetings – a tradition that continues to this day. Speaking many different languages and dialects, they would perform corroboree, initiation and marriage ceremonies, share stories, exchange knowledge and skills, and hunt and eat along the banks and around the billabongs of the Murray. The AlburyCity First Nations collection contains many traditional materials from the Wiradjuri region including bark paintings, weapons, stone tools and a canoe scar tree.

In 1972 Albury was chosen as a town for the Families Resettlement Scheme, which created new mainstream communities for disadvantaged and dispossessed people. The Albury First Nations community is thus a 'mixed mob', coming from many different regions and tribal backgrounds. In making their home in Albury, the diverse members of this community have reconnected with country and re-established First Nations influence and rich cultural traditions in the region.  Hence, our First Nations collection also reflects this 'mixed mob' approach and showcases artefacts from around the region in response to specific requests from our local First Nations community.

In early 2000, the local First Nations community identified the need to 'pass on' their knowledge and skills to the next generation. Since then, workshops have been held in the Albury-Wodonga area involving local Elders with the aim of passing on to younger members of the community knowledge of traditional crafts such as stone tool making, construction of bark canoes, possum skin cloaks, basket and handcraft weaving. Local Elders wanted to record and preserve their traditional knowledge for the next generation and they strongly believe that if this knowledge, which is unique to our region, is not recorded and passed on to their young people, it will be lost.

The collected items are made from local materials and reflect mostly traditional practices. Through a series of workshops, the Elders and the local community have produced unique contemporary pieces that are now part of the AlburyCity First Nations Collection. History has denied many First Nations people the right to their traditional knowledge, and there is now a push to reintroduce practices to the current as well as future generations.