Kabi Kabi homecoming – 80 years in the making.
Our Stanley families would like to thank the Link Up (Qld) team – Pat Thompson, Latia Schefe, Tahj Minnecon and Ruth Loli for their hard work and direction through the research of Government documents, family history and mission records which has led to putting together our true line and connections for our family tree line, 80 years in the making.
My name is Warry John Stanley (SNR I), I was born is Cherbourg on 7th March 1944. I am the fourth child of James (Jim) Stanley and Dorothy Stanley (nee Warnes). I am from a large family , including my siblings Rachel Bundle (nee Ross), Arthur (and his twin who died at birth), Nellie, Peter, Eunice, James, Ezra, Waverley and Aileen and their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. My family also includes Dad’s second family – James Stanley and Dolly Stanley (nee Creed) – Joseph, Carmel, Filacitas, Oriel, Teresa, Elwyn, Lorretta, Priscilla, Aquilla, Cephas, Berice and their children, grandchildren, great grandchildren.
My story begins in Cherbourg (formerly known as Barambah), a place where our people were brought as a part of Governmental policy from statewide areas and in the care of government management. My grandfather and grandmother, Peter and Nellie Stanley (nee Grey), along with his brother Laurence Stanley and her sister Elizabeth (Lizzie) Gyemore were sent from Winton and Barcaldine district. They walked from Woodford over land to Barambah with about 90 others, through much hardship, pain, and will power to keep going. My mother was Dorothy Warnes and she walked to Barambah from Taroom, while others were sent to Woorabinda.
In 1912, Gran Nellie and Grandfather Peter were sent to Rewan as a domestic and a black tracker and, whilst there, a mother asked Gran to take care of her baby if anything happened to her. The mother’s name was Hilda Butler, and she passed away giving birth to the boy. So Gran and Grandfather brought the baby back to Cherbourg and raised him as their own. This baby was my Dad – James Stanley. My Dad went to school, grew up, went to work, played sport and then got married to my Mum – Dorothy Warnes. From their marriage they had ten children, and my other sibling Rachel Ross also spent time with us growing up.
Our Mum passed away in 1948, aged 35 years, leaving behind five children under the age of six. My father was sent to Palm Island. Gran and Grandad looked after us and then we went to the girls and boys dormitory. When we were growing up, my grandmother told us about our bloodline so that we wouldn’t intermarry, and she told us that the Warners were our bloodline and the Swains, Mate Mates. All our siblings except for James were sent to Palm Island. I was about 13 years old when I went to Palm Island. Waverley and Aileen both passed away and are buried at Cherbourg Cemetery. I always thought that our cultural ties were with Barrugam around Chinchilla because of what Gran told us. In 2013, I applied and received a report from Family History. I read the report, but the information didn’t align with what my Gran told us about our bloodline.
Recently, I applied to Link-Up (Qld) and the team presented the report to me at my house in Murgon. This report outlined the research that was done for both sides of my family – my mother Dorothy Stanley (nee Warnes) and my father James Stanley. My daughter and granddaughter have done their DNA test and the family name that is mentioned in the report aligned with the names of close relatives living on the Sunshine Coast. This then began our journey to our reunion.
From 27-29th August, myself, my daughters Judith and Mary and son Neil were very fortunate to be a part of the reunion organised by Link-Up (Qld). My family travelled to Gympie Cemetery where we were able to locate the grave of my Grandmother Sarah Warnes (non-Indigenous) and two of her children – Adeline and Arthur (non-Indigneous). This was emotional for us as this was the first time we were able to connect and find out about my Mum’s Mother – my grandmother. I remember playing golf on the Gympie Golf Course and never knew that I was not too far from my grandmother’s resting place.
We then travelled to the Sunshine Coast and met with Tahj and Latia briefly and they outlined the next two days for us. On Wednesday 28th August, we met Tahj, Latia and Andy outside the front of the accommodation. We then saw two more cars arrive and were introduced to Lyndon Davis, his wife Nicky, their niece Jackie and her son Jarli. This was the first time meeting him in person, however I had spoken to him on several occasions over the phone. The first phone call was very moving as we both broke down and cried as we have now found our family line. He was trying to find my grandfather Alfred Chilly’s line for over 20 years and I have been trying to find my true bloodline for 80 years and to find out that we are a part of the Kabi Kabi/Gubbi Gubbi nation.
Over the next two days, Lyndon took us around country to a variety of cultural significant areas where our people lived, worked, travelled, danced and fished, including lookouts near Mount Buderim, Mudjimba (where we walked on the beach and Lyndon told us the story of Old Woman Island and listened to stories of the land), Muller Park on the Maroochy River near Bli Bli and we saw Lyndon’s artwork of the shields. We visited the area where my great-grandmother Susan Andy planted 10 Bunya Pine trees at Yandina and Rocky Creek, which is an Aboriginal registered site by the Queensland Government. At the Rocky Creek riverbed, there are over 100 axe grinding grooves near the walking path for our people. We also visited the old Nambour cemetery where family members have laid to rest and finally visited the Glasshouse Mountains lookout which gave us a spectacular view of Kabi Kabi/Gubbi Gubbi land.
Judy and I travelled with Lyndon as we went around the different sites and he explained how our people lived and shared their culture through art, dance and language, bringing it altogether for our information about our cultural ties to the land and our ancestors. Lyndon explained his work which includes cultural tours and activities and dance. His knowledge gave me insight to our people and their traditions. At the end of the reunion, I called him an “Aboriginal Dictionary” because of this vast cultural knowledge of the Kabi Kabi/Gubbi Gubbi nation.
“After the reunion, I feel at peace within myself, knowing that the search for my family tree line is now complete on my mother Dorothy Stanley’s (nee Warnes) side.”
Maybe through this article, I may be able to find out more about my fathers’ family. My only piece of information is his mother’s name: Hilda Butler (nee Macalister). I want to thank my two daughters, Mary and Judith, and my son Neil, who were a part of this journey to reality of finding our true connections to the Chilly family and being a part of the Kabi Kabi/Gubbi Gubbi nation.
Published 3 December 2024.
