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The monument commemorates Mathinna (1835 - 1852), an Aboriginal girl after whom the town was named. Mathinna was adopted and befriended by Lady Franklin, the wife of Governor of Tasmania, Sir John Franklin.
Mathinna was born as Mary on Flinders Island, Tasmania to the Chief of the Lowreenne tribe, Towgerer, and his wife Wongerneep but the tribe was captured by Robinson, the Chief Protector of Aborigines, in 1833. Mary was renamed Mathinna when she was about six years old and adopted by Governor Sir John Franklin, an Arctic explorer, and his wife, Lady Jane Franklin; Mathinna was raised with Sir John's daughter Eleanor.
When Sir John Franklin was recalled to England, they left Mathinna at Queen’s Orphan School in Hobart in 1843. Only eight years old, she found it difficult to adjust to her new surroundings. She was sent back to Flinders Island in 1844, at the age of nine, and then sent back to Queen's Orphan School. In 1851, when she was about 16, she returned to the aboriginal settlement at Oyster Cove, west of Hobart. Mathinna drowned in 1852.
Mathinna Article 1869Location
| Address: | Dunn & High Streets, Mathinna, 7214 |
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| State: | TAs |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -41.478684 Long: 147.888214 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
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| Monument Theme: | People |
| Sub-Theme: | Indigenous |
| Approx. Event Start Date: | 1837 |
| Approx. Event End Date: | 1843 |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Saturday 23rd February, 1963 |
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Mathinna
Aboriginal girl befriended by Lady Franklin after whom this town is named
Plaque :
This plaque was unveiled by the Warden Cr G. H. Napier on 23rd Feb. 1963 at a centenary commemoration o Mathinna who as a girl was educated by Lady Franklin, wife of Governor Franklin
1837 - 1843
On their return to England Mathinna returned to her tribe
