The artists are the storytellers of our people, telling individual and collective memories through their artistic works and dance performances. Visual art and performing art form a strong part of the Quandamooka identity.
The Salt Water Murris – Quandamooka Inc is dedicated to the production and presentation of local Aboriginal culture and the art gallery offers a diverse and inspiring display of traditional and contemporary artwork. Established to promote and maintain the cultural capital of our clan groups, Salt Water Murri’s – Quandamooka, is located at Ballow Road, Dunwich. Visit Salt Water Murri’s – Quandamooka Inc, to experience Quandamooka Culture, hear our stories, and see our art.
Our people have retained our distinctive culture and we are living proof of our continuous occupation and cultural practice. Our traditional practices have been upheld in contemporary form. Our People travel regularly through Quandamooka land and sea caring for Country. Through consultations with our Elders and the Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation, we work together to protect our lands and sea country in many ways, including taking part in cultural heritage management, Environmental Impact Assessments, negotiating over developments, educating the public and maintaining land and sea management responsibilities. Caring for our Country is our business. It always has been and always will be.
The Quandamooka Peoples have lived on Minjerribah (now known as North Stradbroke Island) for a very long time. Scientists say at least 25 000 years, however we say longer. Our traditional estate – Quandamooka, the waters and islands of Central and Southern Moreton Bay and the coastal land and streams between the Brisbane to Logan Rivers, gave life to us in a time beyond memory.
There are three clans that comprise the Peoples of the Quandamooka. They are the Nughi of Moorgumpin (now known as Moreton Island) and the Nunukul and Gorenpul of Minjerribah.
We hold our heads high as Traditional Owners with strong identity and culture.
We are the Quandamooka People. We are the people of the sand and the water.
The Quandamooka people have lived on or around Southern Moreton Bay for tens of thousands of years. Archaeological evidence dates occupation of Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) back to at least 21,000 years ago.
Many tribes mingled on Minjerribah and local people identify the Noonuccal and Goenpul as the traditional owners of the Island and surrounding waters. The Dunwich area was called Goompee or Coompee, from a word meaning pearl oyster. It has always been home to a sizeable indigenous population, as well as a seasonal visiting place for tribes from other areas. For the past 180 years, it has also been the site of various European settlements, including a military/stores depot and convict outstation (1827-1831), a Catholic mission (1843-1846), quarantine station (1850-1864) and benevolent asylum (1866-1946).
As far as European history goes, the Portuguese, Dutch and French possibly mapped the coastline around the middle of the 16th century. In 1770, Lieutenant James Cook, sailing along the Eastern Australian coast in HMS Endeavour named Point Lookout, Cape Moreton and Moreton Bay. The next “touch-point” is thought to be in 1803 when a group of Minjerribah men showed Mathew Flinders’ crew where to find fresh water in the Cylinder Beach/Adder Rock area.
Almost 20 years passed before the Surveyor-General, John Oxley, recorded Stradbroke as an island and in 1827, Captain Logan was instructed to establish a convict-manned depot in Dunwich.
Originally known as Pulan by the Nunukul people, Amity Point was home to an Aboriginal population of over 100 at the time of settlement. In 1825 a pilot station was established to guide ships travelling to the Moreton Bay penal settlement via the South Passage. This was Stradbroke Island’s first non-indigenous settlement and closed in the 1840s.
It was in 1850 that Dunwich became Moreton Bay Quarantine Station and only weeks after this proclamation, the immigrant ship Emigrant arrived with typhus on board. Sadly 56 people died, many of whom are buried in Dunwich Cemetery. The Quarantine station at Dunwich closed in 1864 but was used where necessary for about a decade afterwards and in the same year, The Dunwich Benevolent Asylum opened.
In those days, Stradbroke Island was still one whole island (today is of course, North and South Stradbroke Islands). It is thought that perhaps the cargo (which had contained dynamite) from the stricken vessel Cambus Wallace, which had run aground 15 miles north of Southport and had been detonated on site for safety reasons, had destabilised the fragile sand mass as when, two years later, a strong gale blew through the area South Stradbroke Island and North Stradbroke Island were created.
If you’ve ever wondered how some of the spots around our island were named, it was normally because of an event that happened in our past. Cylinder Beach, for instance, was so named due to the acetylene gas cylinders (used for light) that were landed there during the construction of Point Lookout Lighthouse in 1932.
The first tourists to Straddie more than likely came into Amity in 1935 when Hayles Cruises started up their passenger ferry. For many years Amity Point was the main landing place for people visiting the island with Hayles Cruises operating their boats between the island and Brisbane right up until 1970.
Those early, idyllic days came to an end once war broke out and in 1943, a Japanese submarine torpedoed the hospital ship Centaur off North Stradbroke Island where 368 lives were lost. Point Lookout was the site of an American radar station during WW II with a radio direction finder constructed in 1942 at Point Lookout at what is now Tramican Street, by the American armed forces. Later the RAAF took over the operation, which was moved to Point Lookout headland.
Peace resumed and in 1964, Straddie really took off for tourists as the first drive-on / drive-off barge from Cleveland to Dunwich commenced.
North Stradbroke Island, Minjerribah is Quandamooka land. The Government of Australia proclaimed Native Title to the area on 4 July 2011.
And the rest, as they say…. Is history…..
The Quandamooka people have a rich history and strong cultural identity. They have lived on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) for thousands of years, with evidence of occupation dating back at least 21,000 years. The Quandamooka people are made up of three clans - Nughi of Moorgumpin (Moreton Island), and Nunukul and Gorenpul of Minjerribah.
The Salt Water Murris - Quandamooka Inc is an organization dedicated to promoting and preserving local Aboriginal culture. They have an art gallery that showcases traditional and contemporary artwork, offering visitors a chance to experience Quandamooka culture and learn about their stories.
Caring for the land and sea is a priority for the Quandamooka people, and they work closely with elders and the Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation to protect their lands and cultural heritage. They engage in cultural heritage management, environmental impact assessments, and educate the public on land and sea management responsibilities.
The European history of the area began with the arrival of explorers like Cook, who named various points along the coast in the 1700s. European settlements began in the 1800s, including a military depot, mission, quarantine station, and benevolent asylum on Minjerribah.
Amity Point, on Minjerribah, was home to an Aboriginal population and a pilot station for ships traveling to the Moreton Bay penal settlement. Dunwich became the Moreton Bay Quarantine Station in 1850, and the Dunwich Benevolent Asylum opened the same year. The island eventually split into North Stradbroke Island and South Stradbroke Island, possibly due to the detonation of dynamite from a stranded ship.
Tourism started to grow on the island in the mid-1900s, with ferries bringing visitors. However, World War II brought changes to the island, with an American radar station established at Point Lookout. After the war, tourism resumed, and the first drive-on/drive-off barge started operating in 1964.
Native title was proclaimed to the Quandamooka land in 2011, recognizing their ongoing connection to the area.
The history of the Quandamooka people and their land is a significant part of the identity of the region, and their art and storytelling play a crucial role in preserving and sharing their culture.
- The Quandamooka people have lived on Minjerribah (North Stradbroke Island) for a very long time, with archaeological evidence dating occupation back to at least 21,000 years ago.
- The Quandamooka people consist of three clans: Nughi of Moorgumpin (Moreton Island), Nunukul, and Gorenpul of Minjerribah.
- The Salt Water Murris - Quandamooka Inc is dedicated to promoting and maintaining the cultural capital of the Quandamooka clan groups. Their art gallery showcases traditional and contemporary artwork.
- The Quandamooka people practice their traditional culture and are actively involved in caring for their land and sea, working with Elders and the Quandamooka Yoolooburrabee Aboriginal Corporation.
- The Dunwich area, which is now known as Goompee or Coompee, has been home to a sizeable indigenous population and was also the site of various European settlements, including a military depot, Catholic mission, quarantine station, and benevolent asylum.
- Lt. James Cook and later explorers mapped the coastline in the 16th and 18th centuries. Captain Logan established a convict-manned depot in Dunwich in 1827.
- Amity Point, originally known as Pulan, became the site of the first non-indigenous settlement on Stradbroke Island, with a pilot station and later a quarantine station.
- Dunwich became Moreton Bay Quarantine Station in 1850, and the Dunwich Benevolent Asylum opened in the same year.
- South Stradbroke Island and North Stradbroke Island were created by a strong gale that blew through the area, possibly due to the destabilization caused by the dynamite from the shipwreck of the Cambus Wallace.
- Cylinder Beach was named after acetylene gas cylinders that were landed there during the construction of Point Lookout Lighthouse in 1932.
- Hayles Cruises started passenger ferry services to Amity in 1935, making it the main landing place for visitors to the island.
- During World War II, Point Lookout was the site of an American radar station, and a radio direction finder was constructed by the American armed forces. The RAAF took over the operation later.
- In 1964, the first drive-on/drive-off barge from Cleveland to Dunwich commenced, marking the increase in tourism to the island.
- Native Title to the area was proclaimed by the Government of Australia on July 4, 2011.