Doomadgee



An Aboriginal settlement near the Gulf of Carpentaria.

Location: 93 km West of Burketown; 1,035 km west of Cairns; 104 km east of Northern Territory Border.



Brief history: The Aboriginal mission of Doomadgee was originally established on the coast near Burketown in 1931 by the Christian Brethren after the local police sergeant in Burketown suggested that the local Aborigines, predominantly the Gundalita people, would be happier if they were removed from the fringes of Burketown. The settlement was moved inland to its present location after a cyclone in 1936 made conditions on the coast impossible. In 1983 the Gundalita people gained control of the town and in 1988 the last of the mission people moved out. The town is now controlled by the Doomadgee Aboriginal Council.

Origin of name: the local Aboriginal name for the locality. Its meaning is not known. It was originally known as Dumaji.







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