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Dolly Dalrymple (1808–1864) was a half-caste
Tasmanian Aboriginal The Aboriginal Tasmanians (Palawa kani: ''Palawa'' or ''Pakana'') are the Aboriginal people of the Australian island of Tasmania, located south of the mainland. For much of the 20th century, the Tasmanian Aboriginal people were widely, and ...
woman. She was a known figure in the Tasmanian colonial legends.


Biography

Dolly Dalrymple was born on one of the
Furneaux Islands The Furneaux Group is a group of approximately 100 islands located at the eastern end of Bass Strait, between Victoria and Tasmania, Australia. The islands were named after British navigator Tobias Furneaux, who sighted the eastern side of th ...
, between Victoria and Tasmania, to Woretemoeteyenner (also known as Pung or Margaret), daughter of the chief Mannarlargenna, from
Van Diemen's Land Van Diemen's Land was the colonial name of the island of Tasmania used by the British during the European exploration of Australia in the 19th century. A British settlement was established in Van Diemen's Land in 1803 before it became a sep ...
, and George Briggs from
Bedfordshire Bedfordshire (; abbreviated Beds) is a ceremonial county in the East of England. The county has been administered by three unitary authorities, Borough of Bedford, Central Bedfordshire and Borough of Luton, since Bedfordshire County Council was ...
, England. Her mother was either kidnapped by or paid to live with Briggs, who later sold her on to another sealer for a
guinea Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the w ...
. Dolly Dalrymple became the foster child of the surgeon Jacob Mountgarrett (1773–1828), of
Port Dalrymple George Town (Palawa_kani: ''kinimathatakinta'') is a large town in north-east Tasmania, on the eastern bank of the mouth of the Tamar River. The Australian Bureau of Statistics records the George Town Municipal Area had a population of 6,764 as ...
, who had her baptised with the surname Dalrymple and educated her in Western domestic chores. From 1825, she lived with the convict Thomas Johnson (1801–1867), with whom she had several children and married six years later, in October 1831. Earlier in the same year she had successfully defended her hut and children against an attack by Aboriginals while Johnson was away. She was rewarded by the government with of land at
Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...
, where she moved with Johnson and her children. In 1841 she was assisted by the government to bring her mother Woretemoeteyenner, then residing at Wybalenna, on
Flinders Island Flinders Island, the largest island in the Furneaux Group, is a island in the Bass Strait, northeast of the island of Tasmania. Flinders Island was the place where the last remnants of aboriginal Tasmanian population were exiled by the coloni ...
, to live with her at Perth on the mainland of Tasmania. By this time, Dalrymple had seven children. The entire family moved to the
Mersey The River Mersey () is in North West England. Its name derives from Old English and means "boundary river", possibly referring to its having been a border between the ancient kingdoms of Mercia and Northumbria. For centuries it has formed part ...
region in 1845. Thomas Johnson eventually became wealthy and purchased in the modern locality of Latrobe where he founded Sherwood Hall beside the Mersey and Railton Road. Dolly Dalrymple often managed his estates during his absence.


References

{{authority control 1808 births 1864 deaths 19th-century Australian people Indigenous Tasmanian people 19th-century Australian women