The Bloomfield River Mission was situated on the Bloomfield River in the Daintree region, north of Cooktown. Formerly known as the Aboriginal Mission Station, the Lutheran Church took control from the government in 1887 and closed the Mission in 1902. Children were housed in dormitories on the Mission for educational purposes.
Problems plagued the Mission from the beginning. The Aboriginal people resisted settlement at the Mission and the government judged the management by the Lutheran Society in South Australia as unsatisfactory. Government funding for the Mission was gradually reduced until it was completely withdrawn in 1900.
An article in the Brisbane Courier in 1900 stated that the government was not happy with the management of the Mission and would not supply more funding until new management was put in place. The Mission was abandoned in 1902.
The Aboriginal people of the Bloomfield area continued to interact with Europeans, trading their labour for goods and tools. They maintained their traditional culture and remained independent until 1957 when the Wajul Wajul Mission was established at Bloomfield.
From
1887
To
1902
1887 - 1902
Bloomfield River Mission was situated on the Bloomfield River, north-west of Cooktown, in the Daintree region, Queensland (Building Demolished)
