Goolam Badoola of Bulgarbardoo was the only ‘Afghan’ camel teamster in Western Australia, to transfer from the declining transport industry and successfully developed a new industry for himself — a sheep station to which he gave the name Bulgarbardoo. Many of his countrymen, although tough, capable, and enterprising pioneers of Australia’s arid interior, stayed with their camels and carrying business long after railways and then motor transport warned them of their diminishing future. Many fell hopelessly into debt to storekeepers and finished up working for a meager living.
Goolam Badoola too stayed with his camels, however, he put them to use in the development of his pastoral property which, by 1935, covered 202,532 acres. On September 10th, 1935, Goolam Badoola was issued with a passport, for his return to his “homeland’. In its pages are inscribed his National status as being a British subject by birth 15 Aug 1872 and place of birth Karachi in then British India (today’s Pakistan).
It was in Karachi that the story of this man’s association with Australia began. In the 1880s, Goolam Badoola, with his camels, joined a shipment of camels and their drivers on a steamer boat for Port Augusta, South Australia. This was a time of large importation of camels and their handlers in the response to the demands of transportation into the arid Australian interior then being rapidly opened up.
Goolam Badoola of Bulgarbardoo – Photo N Rind
Goolam Badoola had started working with camels when he was six years old. Each day he travelled fourteen miles to the port of Karachi, British India, to sell wood. This journey with his one male and two female camels took from 4am to 2pm daily. Badoola had heard of a ship in port wanting young men and camels to take to another land. Badoola determined to see these ships loading camels for Australia, three miles from where he sold the wood.
His story, retold many times to his children, was retold some fifty-five years after Goolam Badoola’s return to Karachi by his youngest son Noordin Badoola Rind, in September 1990 on the property once owned by his father.
‘Father went there one day and watched the loading of the camels in a rope “net crane”, with great care taken with the camel’s delicate feet as each was landed. One bull camel wouldn’t load and broke away. No one would go near him. “I know how to catch this camel” my father said to the man next to him. With the camel still on the loose and no sign of him being subdued, the man challenged Badoola to catch him. He took his stick (6ft long) which he always carried with him and beat around and behind the camel with the camel trying to get round to bite him. “Oush Oush” (sit). The camel finally gave up and after hitting him on the neck once or twice, the camel sat down which then allowed Badoola to throw a rope around his neck and take hold of the nose peg.
The boss of the company importing the camels called out from the ship. “who’s that boy. I want that boy. That’s the kind of people I want!” My father was told the big boss wanted him, but he hesitated because he couldn’t speak English. The fellow from the ship put me on the back of the camel and said, will you come with me? (Badoola’s native tongue was Urdu, although he could also speak Afghani, Baluchi, and Punjabi.).
Goolam Badoola had no comprehension of the distance he would be travelling from his home, but when it was agreed that his own camels could come, he was happy and sought permission from his uncle. Badoola was offered10 rupees to agree — twice as much as he would have received for his wood. This was given to his uncle by the contractor. In three to four days, he was on the ship promising his uncle that he would be sending back more money.
Once out to sea on this epic voyage to a new land, almost everyone on board became seasick except Badoola, who cared for the camels as well as the other men. The date of Goolam Badoola’s arrival in Australia cannot be confirmed. It was common at that time for the number of cames to be recorded, with the number of afghans omitted. On the occasions where the number of handlers was recorded, names were not. One newspaper in its shipping list “Mr Chewings in the first cabin and 58 afghans in the second cabin.”
It is believed that Badoola was a teenager on this voyage and probably arrived in the late 1880s. In the 1890s large numbers of camels and their drivers were imported. (The two brothers Faiz and Tagh Mahomet alone owned over 900 camels and employed over 100 afghans at this time, their business having commenced in 1888 in South Australia). Noordin Badoola Rind speaks of the importer (the “Big Boss’) as being Gaskin. There is no record of a Gaskin, however, this may have been Gascard.
Gasgard had imported horses into the Colony at least as early as 1891 and was known in all the Colonies as one of the largest dealers in horse flesh in Australasia. He also had 300 camels employed in the carrying business under the charge of a Mr. Symonds. Prior to establishing a business in Cue in 1894, Gascard was largely interested in the Indian trade, shipping as many as 1000 horses to India in one year. He may have used the same steamer, built to carry large stock, to backload the camels to Australia. One of the drivers with his camels may well have been Goolam Badoola.
Arriving in Australia, Goolam Badoola disembarked at Port Augusta in South Australia. It is believed that he went to work carrying for the railway construction, which became known as the Ghan line. In January 1891, this line was completed to Oodnadatta (at which point the construction ceased till 1927). In all it’s believed that Badoola spent some 10 years in South Australia.
The early 1890s saw the Goldrushes on the Murchison followed by the Eastern Goldfields in Western Australia. By 1900, gold production was well underway and the inland population in these areas increased rapidly. It is probable that Goolam Badoola ‘overlanded’ his camels to the West, probably carting to the remote outstations along the telegraph Line. On the Goldfields Badoola supplied logs to the gold mines and carried water in drums and other things. This was a profitable time for him.
Yardwork at Meeline Station – Old Bulgarbardoo mulga yards photo © J Dinham
Bulgarbardoo Pastoral Property-
In 1908, J H Thomas (storekeeper at Mt Magnet) and Annie C Watson acquired pastoral lease 733/96 comprising of 50,000 acres and 734/96 being 30,000 acres. Annie Watson then took up lease 648/96 of 30,000 acres on April 1st, 1908. On Dec 1st, 1908, and March 3rd, 1909 these leases were transferred to Goolam Badoola, becoming Pastoral Lease 2333/96 the foundation of Bulgarbardoo. These three leases formed the north end of today’s ‘Meeline Station’ property. The original northernmost lease 649/96 is intersected from east to west by the Mt Magnet to Sandstone road. It is here that the 24-mile mill is situated, and the site of the coach stop. It is said that a ‘sly grog’ business was also operated here — perhaps before Badoola’s time, he being moslem, forbidding alcohol.
Goolam Badoola built his first dwelling place close by the track. It was a good place to pick up extra carting contracts. He observed the effect on the carrying business by the railway creeping inland in both South Australia and Western Australia, and past his northern boundaries to Sandstone. In 1910 Goolam Badoola intensified his development of Bulgarbardoo (meaning Bulgar, a grass & Bardoo, a grub) which to him presented a greater prospect.
He considered that 1912 was the year his leases constituted the founding of his property. Carved in an old fig tree at his second homestead site was ‘G B 1912’. This was prior to the competitive truck being introduced into the region, which gives an indication of his foresight. Undeterred by a lack of wire (on account of WW1), Badoola fenced miles of country with brush fencing.
He was a leader amongst his own people and he employed his own countrymen to carry out development work and the building of the mulga yards throughout the station. Kois the ‘Afghan’ and later a hawker in Mt Magnet was one who helped him in this, as was George Watts. At some point during these early years, family tradition relates that Goolam Badoola received a Government “citation”, honouring him for his action of carrying stores and supplies to Meekatharra, which had been cut off by flood waters. It seems that the townspeople were near to starvation when he arrived and the police had to fire shots over their heads on account of the rush for stores.
‘In March 1900, it rained as I have never seen it rain since, and within half an hour there was 30 feet of water in the shaft. It continued to rain off and on for a month, the Murchison being 12 miles wide and Peak Hill isolated. The consequence was that we were soon short of the necessities of life — Cartage was £6 a ton from Cue to Peak Hill in normal times, but it had now gone up to £50 with no takers. By this time there was talk of leaving the town owing to the shortage when word was received that two teams had got through. They duly arrived — and so ended the famine of the Peak.
If it was the Peak Hill flood of 1900, for which the ‘citation’ was granted, it was clearly before the leases were taken up. Badoola’s family believes that his actions had most certainly in some way assisted his pastoral enterprise. This may have been by way of a “gift of favour” and may have served as a reference when he made his application. Indeed at this time, the Government issued documents to ‘aliens’ who had proved themselves worthy of Citizenship Rights. This entitled the recipient, amongst other things, to the right to own property.
Yardwork at Meeline Station – Old Bulgarbardoo mulga yards photo © J Dinham
Meanwhile, Bulgarbardoo was expanded. Badoola acquired leases to the south and east from Edhouse, Sampson, and Green and in 1914 and 1918 those of Elliott and Richardson. All his paddocks were designed with well-located watering holes. It was then he moved his homestead to a more central location which is the site of the present homestead. When this first homestead was lost to fire a further two buildings of a basic nature were built. Jimmy James lived in one and Badoola and George Watts shared the other, their wives each having their own stove to cook on. A prayer house was also erected.
On some Saturday’s Watts cycled to Mt Magnet and back in a day. He made a bet that he could cut 1000 fence posts in three days, near the end of the third day he collapsed from the extreme exertion only a few posts short of his goal. Those who bet that he couldn’t cut the 1000 were however impressed and paid up. Near the location of the new homestead, Badoola employed Palmer to build an eight-stand wood and iron shearing shed in 1924. It was a large shed and up to 1000 sheep could be held undercover. A Ferrier’s press was installed and remains in operation today. Surrounding yards were built using over 7000 mulga posts which also remain today. Badoola’s flock was increased to 15,000.
Goolam Badoola was married on 12 December 1928 to Mariam L G Martin. Mariam, a Malay Aboriginal. was a sister of Freddy Martin who had been caretaker on North Boodanoo. She, with her husband, raised four children; Numrose, Mirdost, Nordin, and a daughter Noori. Following the death of his wife in childbirth aged 29 years in Geraldton on the 24 February 1931, while the children were still young, Badoola decided to return to his homeland. In this way, his children would receive a good Moslem education and be cared for by other family members in case of his own death as he was not a young man. He took the children home in 1931.
In 1935, Goolam Badoola sold his enterprise to P M Morrissey of Nallan Station, and so it was that Goolam Badoola who arrived in Australia as an unidentified ‘Afghan’ camel driver returned to his homeland a half a century later this time with his own passport acknowledging his occupation as a – retired pastoralist. After his return, he continued to import Australian goods to India.
References:
Drawn to Mt Magnet, Wannars – Dolly Pots -Shears- by Lorna Day and Karen Morrissey
Gold on the Murchison by P R Heydon
Just a Century Ago by P R Heydon
Old Coach Road to Cue and Beyond by Alex Palmer
Dollypot by Peter Bridge
TROVE
Since this story was published, John Pritchard has found the following story written by Goolam’s Gt Grandaughter Ifzah Rind. It is from the website https://iwimra.com/blogs/news/the-fight-for-identity
The fight for identity-
This is the remarkable story of my great-grandparents, Goolam Badoola and Marium Martin.
Goolam was born around 1860 to a poor Muslim family in Baluchistan, then under British rule, and now part of Iran, Afghanistan and Pakistan. He was raised there and worked with camels from a young age. The British sought cameleers to work in Australia and in the 1870s, at around eighteen, Goolam arrived at Port Augusta, South Australia, with several camels and very little English.
For several years he worked as a cameleer transporting supplies to the Western Australian goldfields but made a name for himself when in 1900, severe flooding isolated Meekatharra and surrounding areas and townships. With residents facing certain death due to a lack of supplies being able to reach them, broken communication lines, and famine, Goolam used his camels and saved more than 600 people by transporting them to safety and providing food and shelter.
As a reward, which was extremely rare at the time, the WA Government granted him citizenship and landholdings near Mount Magnet, 350km east of Geraldton. Goolam owned and ran a sheep station near Mount Magnet, named Bulgabardoo.
Here he met his future wife, Marium. Marium’s father was a Malay Muslim who worked at the station. Her mother was a Wongi/Yamatji Aboriginal from the Badimaya clan. They were married in December 1917, in a Perth mosque and celebrated with Aboriginal ceremonies in Geraldton.
However, the Chief Protector of Aborigines, A. O. Neville, deemed the marriage illegal because it had taken place in a mosque, and secondly, was between an Aboriginal and a non-Aboriginal. He determined Marium be removed from her husband and taken to an Aboriginal settlement.
In a 1918 letter written by Marium to the warden, she argues her marriage was legal because a type of dowry required under Islamic custom had been provided. Nevertheless, she was fearful the Aborigines Department would take her away from a good husband:
Dear Sir, I’m writing you a few lines and I hope you will take a great interest in it because I’m a poor unfortunate girl, and the Aboriginal department is trying to put me away from my good home.
Goolam and Marium eventually had four children: three boys and a girl. The threat to take Marium now extended to include her children who were under constant threat of being forcibly removed, and she would hide them in boxes when the authorities arrived at the property. My grandfather said his parents were very frightened:
Because at that time they were taking children away, and my father was afraid they were going to take me away and take me out of school and take my big brother away.
When Marium died in 1930, the Chief Protector then threatened to remove the children under the Aboriginal Protection Act, effectively becoming part of the stolen generation. Goolam, having already experienced a struggle to marry an Aboriginal woman, had the foresight to prevent his children being taken and organised for a nephew to transport them – my grandfather, his sister Nora, and two brothers, Mirdoz and Namroz – to the province of Baluchistan in British India. My grandfather was twelve years old when he arrived in Baluchistan.
For several years, Aunty Nora fought to be allowed back into Australia … the country of her birth. She had to fight for Australian citizenship … for the country of her birth. Citizenship was eventually granted and she arrived to her homeland in 2000 where she stayed until her death in 2005. She had eight children and fifty grandchildren in Baluchistan, yet the Australian government did not allow any of them to visit her.
Towards the end of her life in 2005, her youngest daughter, Khan Zadi, was denied Australian citizenship let alone a visa to visit her mother, Nora, because of a an age limit requirement under immigration law and fears she may overstay her visa. Aunty Nora wanted to be surrounded by her family just one more time before she passed away. She died without this wish being fulfilled; she has moved on, but is not at peace. Her daughter was eventually granted a visa but its timing meant she could only attend the funeral.
One Indigenous family’s fight for recognition as Australians has been a long one and is indicative of the fight of all Indigenous peoples. In a submission to the Indigenous Constitutional Forum, the Badoola Family stated their case:
“We have been long striving since the 1960s through to today, crossing many barriers in the Citizenship Acts. All the Acts use the word “Australian”. We feel legislative changes should be made to include “Aboriginal”/”Indigenous” as citizen by birth right, no matter where they were born. We are aboriginal people of indigenous parents. We and our children were born overseas. The Citizenship Act is for migrant people. We do not consider ourselves as migrants, and as such seek your help to differentiate between the two.”
In 1958, Goolam Badoola passed away. Succeeding generations have settled in Western Australia, Victoria and other parts of the world. Goolam and Marium’s sons and daughters, grandsons, and granddaughters, and great-grandsons and great-granddaughters are fully recognised and welcomed by the Aboriginal community.
There are now over one hundred descendants of Goolam and Marium living in Australia. We are proud Yamatji people. We are proud Baluchis. We are proud Muslims. And we are proud Australians.
By Ifzah Rind
Moya Sharp
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