This is the seventh instalment of the Investigator’s series ‘The Story of Geelong’, published in May 1967. Using John Wedge’s journals and a subsequent map of his explorations the writer takes the reader along on that first recorded exploration of our region. Included amongst his party was William Buckley and some other Wadawurrung men, and he provides a richly detailed account of the landscape and the occupancy of the area at this point of European contact.
Readers, especially those from Aboriginal and Torres Strait communities, should be warned that the content may be culturally sensitive and the language choices of the writers or authors may be inappropriate today and reflect the attitudes of the period when they were written.
Wedge with Alexander Thomson and William Buckley
On August 7, 1835, another member of the Port Phillip Association joined the group established at Indented Head. This was John Helder Wedge, who had been assistant surveyor-general in Van Diemen’s Land but had given up this post to further his interest in the Port Philip Association.
He “proceeded to Port Phillip, intending to direct my attention to the nature of the country, the facility afforded by navigation of transporting the future produce of the country to foreign markets, and, particularly, to the habits and characters of the natives of the country, with a view to satisfy my own mind, and that of my friends, as to the security of residing among them; as well, also, to enable me to form some judgement as to the probability or chance of leading the aborigines by degrees to embrace the advantages of religion, together with the other benefits to be derived from civilisation“.
At Indented Head he found that the size of the establishment had increased from the three white men and five Sydney natives had left there:
“At the encampment I found seven families of the natives, altogether to forty-six in number, and a person of the name of Buckley, who had been residing with them for about 30 years, and had absconded from the detachment of prisoners that had been sent by the government to this place, just previously to it been relinquished“.
Wedge was later instrumental in obtaining Buckley’s pardon, as not only did he draw up a petition for pardon on Buckley‘s behalf and submitted to a government Arthur but he also added his own personal recommendation pointing out the “essential service he has rendered in becoming the means of communication with the natives“.
About a week after his arrival Wedge began and examination of the country, beginning with the “Balarine“ Peninsula; he was accompanied by Alexander Thompson, two of the Sydney natives, and two Port Phillip natives. He explored first the Bellarine Hills where he found the soil and the grass good. Being told by the natives that there was no water in the direction in which he was moving, he “deemed it right to go in the direction they pointed out, which took us about 4 miles across low flat land, I’ve not so good quality, the soil being more of a clay, to a deep water, hole on the margin of an extensive salt water marsh excellent quality of soil“. This would probably be the region. From here they proceeded Northwest about 5 miles to the coast to contact some aborigines whose smoke they had observed.
At this stage there are pages missing from Wedge’s field book and so we cannot be sure how much further he carried his exploration at this time, but his map of his journeys shows another trip on the Bellarine Peninsula, this time down into the present Ocean Grove area.
Whether he explored this region at this time or not, on Tuesday, August 18, he was on the move again. This time he took the whaleboat to the western shores of Port Phillip, arriving about sunset; Buckley and Alexander Todd were in the party this time. Wedge noted the country as “slightly wooded to west of small Bay (Corayio or Geelong)”.
The following morning (August 19) he discovered the Barwon and Moorabool Rivers. In his field book Wedge describe this in detail:
“After travelling over a fine grassy country, lightly timbered, gradually rising for about 2 miles and a half, bearing S.85 W, we came to the river BARWOUNE, a steep declivity taking us down to the river. This bank, or hill, if it may be so called, is, I imagine, about 200 ft. high, and from the point of which I was almost lost in astonishment at the vast extent of grassy planes through the west and north west that opened up upon me, extending much further, as Buckley informed me, then the eye could reach (especially in a westerly direction), and I think I do not overrate the distance in saying that I could see 40 miles ahead of me.“
The “bank or hill“ was that overlooking present day Queens Park and Fyansford, and after descending it, Wedge came to the junction of two rivers; the one from the west he called The Worragong (which he says was the native name) while the one from the north he named the Yaloke.1 The river below the junction he called the Barwoune (also a native name) and remarked that it was salt excepting in times of flood.
About a quarter of a mile above the junction of the two rivers he discovered two waterfalls: the first he called Buckley Falls and the second Banyuwillock, the native name. Here wedged cross to the south bank2 and followed the river along the foot of the “Barrabull“ hills for 5 to 6 miles. He commented thus:
“These hills afford a fine pasture for sheep, and on some of them I found limestone. The land is not so rich quality as the Bearkmazon (Bellarine) Hills.“
The following day (August 20) the party crossed the Barrabool Hills and moved onto Lake Modewarre, the country around which Wedge described as “lightly timbered, grassy with very gentle rises, and flats well adapted for sheep feeding“.
From here on August 21 Wedge proceeded in a south easterly direction past the small lagoon and across a water course called Byourac by the natives. This was the present Thompson or Bream Creek. They passed through an open forest of gum trees with a few stringy bark until they reached another water course running about S.80 E. From Wedge’s descriptions it is hard to be accurate in determining exactly where he went but examination of the modern map suggest this was Spring Creek and that he encountered it somewhere in the vicinity of present day Bellbrae. Here the country “became hilly, the timber rather larger, but still grassy for about 4 miles, when we found the iron back tree forest which we were in search of. It is not in any a great quantity, nor are the trees very large, but these will be sufficient for the purposes of the company”.
On Saturday, August 22, Wedge, leaving Buckley and the natives at their camp, took Todd3 with him to examine the extent of the iron bark. He reported: “we found that it extends to the south west, and there will be ample for the establishments in tended to be formed.“ Travelling in a south-westerly direction for about 4 miles he reached the coast at a spot where the cliffs were perpendicular, possibly somewhere in the region of Point Addis. He described the area as follows:
“There was several points of hills along this part of the beach, running back, and forming the tops of the hills along which I had travelled. immediately abutting on the beach the hills and the valleys are destitute of timber, but from a quarter to half a mile back the stunted a stringy bark forest commence and appear to prevail for some distance.“
On August 23 Wedge moved down the valley to the sea roughly where Torquay is today. He now redirected his steps towards the Barwon, crossing a saltwater creek about a mile further on; a further 3 miles and he encountered another creek “which was parallel with the beach nearly 2 miles, and is the outlet of the Biourac“. This was near the present Breamlea. Between here and the Barwon Wedge discovered that there were “some fine marches, and land lightly elevated, better adapted for cattle than I have before seen”. After crossing the Barwon, “which took us a little above the knees”,4 the party met two families of aborigines with whom they camped for the night.
On the following day (August 24) Wedge completed this particular journey of exploration with a straight trip of about 18 miles back to Indented Head.
Three days later Wedge set out again in a whaleboat to explore the two rivers at the northern extremity of Port Phillip, but because the boat was leaking he put back and decided to undertake the journey on foot. His field book states that he “proceeded about 12 miles to Noandeit”, and that the next day he travelled a further 15 miles to Geelong. This makes a total of 27 miles, but Indented Head is only about 18 miles from Geelong so that there appears to be a discrepancy here.5
From Geelong he moved about 4 miles N.15 W. to Keerwir which he says is “the native name for a freshwater hole at the head of a saltwater creek. Above this waterhole there is a channel for a water course, but from its appearance I should imagine the water but seldom runs excepting after very heavy range“. This description suggests that the water course was Cowies Creek.
From here the party continued in a north westerly direction “over extensive planes, a slight rise about a mile on our rider, for the first 6 miles, which to the left and run to the foot of Anikai Yowwham at the foot of which rise I went about 4 miles, intending to ascend one of the eminences which form the cluster of hills (Anikai Yowwham)“. Learning from the aborigines that there was no water in this direction, Wedge swung to his right and crossed the “ridge of hills which run from Mount Yowwham” (Flinders Peak) to an open plane of about a mile in length and boarded on each side by lightly timbered country. To the north west the plains extended “to a great distance, bounded on the west by the hills from the anarchy, from which latter place they take a Westerly direction, bounding the plains north of the river Wong, and From which I should imagine the yellow takes its rise“. They continued about another 3 miles in camp for the night at some ponds of water, in a water course, possibly the Balliang Creek.
On the next day, August 30 a journey of about 13 miles brought the party to a “rapid river, about 8 yards wide, with a rocky bottom“. This river, named Peel by Wedge, was the Werribee. Two days later he camped on the banks of the saltwater river, and the next day moved up the Yarra to find there the advance party of John Pascoe Faulkners association. He informed them in writing that they were trespassing, borrowed some flour from them, and, on September 3, set off on a north westerly direction, his object being “to intersect the tract of land in a transverse direction, so as to view that portion of it which was not seen by Mr Batman“. he followed the route showing on the map, eventually return into the banks of the Werribee which he had difficulty in crossing because it was in flood.
Once across Wedge continued in a general southerly direction until he crossed his track of August 30. But this time his provisions were finished and the party were existing on roots. Two days later, on September 8, the party arrived back at the encampment after “long day’s march“.
The accompanying map is based on Wedge’s account in his field book and on the map which he drew of his exploration. The latter is in the possession of the State Library of Victoria which kindly made a copy available to the writer to assist his research.
Notes
1. The map varies from the field book on the river names: upstream the Barwon is named the Byron, while the Moorabool above the junction with the Barwon is called the Barrwarrine; further upstream it is marked as the Yaloak. It is possible that some of these names were written in by someone other than Wedge for the map shows places that were not known or named at the time of Wedge’s journey e.g. Point Henry and Steiglitz station.
2. To do this Wedge would first have had to cross the Moorabool; he makes no mention of how or where he did this and one wonders whether he might have crossed at what later became known as Fyan’s Ford.
3. Wedge specifically says Todd but Todd’s journal makes it clear that he was at the camp at Indented Head at this time.
4. The book refers to the “crossing place“ of the Barwon which one might imagine meant the Buckley Falls region, but the map shows that Wedge crossed near the head of Lake Connewarre.
5. Noandeit is not shown on the map, but there is a journey marked from the encampment to what would be Portarlington today, which would be about 15 miles from Geelong. However, Portarlington is nowhere near 12 miles from Indented Head. In Todd’s journal this name is a spelt Noengeit and is described as the second of 10 native stages between the camp and the Yarra.
