Illawarra Aborigines Before Colonisation conference
1 - 2 August 2015, University of Wollongong Five Islands Aborigines circa 1815 The first official settlement of Illawarra by Europeans took place during 1815 with the erection of a stockman's hut and stockyard at Wollongong for Charles Throsby. Shortly thereafter land grants were surveyed and issued. Two centuries later, Aboriginal historians and archaeologists will bring their history back home when they gather at the University of Wollongong on 1-2 August to discuss life in Illawarra before colonisation. "It’s a huge challenge. We've got a lot of ground to travel. Our history in Illawarra stretches back 30,000 years", said Dharawal Elder and archaeologist Les Bursill OAM. Scholars attending the conference will discuss the Dreaming, recent archaeological finds, farming with fire, and art and culture before the European invasion of 1788. Keynote speaker will be Adjunct Professor and Senior Research Fellow at the Australian National University, Bill Gammag