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Crown Lands Commissioners – Moreton Bay and Darling Downs, 1842–56

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  20 June 2019

Margaret Shield
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Abstract

Commissioners of Crown Lands were the first government officials appointed to the newly declared pastoral districts surrounding Moreton Bay after it was opened to free settlement in 1842. These officers had a significant impact on the formation of regional communities, the administration of justice and the treatment of the Indigenous people but their primary responsibility was the implementation and enforcement of government policies relating to Crown Lands. Commissioners were required to oversee pastoral leases, ensure payment of fees for pastoral and other licences and undertake expeditions to provide the New South Wales government with information regarding the nature of the land and its resources. Extracts from the original correspondence between the Commissioners and the Colonial Secretary indicate that, despite enormous challenges, early Crown Lands Commissioners were largely successful in ensuring the orderly settlement of pastoral districts. Their success however, came at the expense of the Indigenous people, who were systematically driven from their lands without compensation and with scant consideration for their welfare.

Type
Harry Gentle Resource Centre special section
Information
Queensland Review , Volume 26 , Issue 1 , June 2019 , pp. 71 - 85
Copyright
© The Author(s) 2019 

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References

Notes

1 An Act for Protecting the Crown Lands of this Colony from Encroachment, Intrusion, and ‘Trespass’, New South Wales Government Gazette, 11 September 1833, p. 356. ‘Crown Lands’, NSW Government Gazette, 22 May 1839, p. 607.

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6 Metes and bounds’ was a system used to mark a boundary by using compass directions and geographical features.

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26 C. Rolleston, ‘Letter to the Colonial Secretary dated 22 November 1844’ in Beal, Initial Settlement on the Darling Downs, p. 17.

27 C. Rolleston, ‘Letter to Niel Ross dated 5 May 1846’ in Beal, Initial Settlement on the Darling Downs, p. 45.

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31 M. O’Connell to Governor FitzRoy 6 February 1854, Letterbook-Government Resident Port Curtis, QSA Series 6614 Item ID: 212594

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