South Australian Government
The Aborigines Office was the name given to the Office of the Protector of Aborigines in 1866 while the position of Protector was vacant due to illness. During this period the responsibilities of the Protector were taken on by clerks in the Aborigines Office and a greater number of sub-protectors. The Aborigines Office consisted only of the Chief Protector of Aborigines, the Sub-Protector, Far North and one junior clerk when it was replaced by the Aborigines Department in 1912.
The Aborigines Office was under the auspices of the Minister for Crown Lands and Immigration until 1891. Between 1892 and 1901 the Minister of Agriculture and Education was the Minister responsible. Subsequently the office came under the Treasurer and Commissioner for Crown Lands and Immigration (1902 - 1903), the Attorney-General and Minister of Education (1904 - 1905), Commissioner of Public Works and Minister of Education (1906 - 1908), and Commissioner of Public Works thereafter.
1866 - 1912 Aborigines Office
1912 - 1962 Aborigines Department
1963 - 1970 Department of Aboriginal Affairs
1970 - 1972 Department of Social Welfare and Aboriginal Affairs
1972 - 1990 Department for Community Welfare
1990 - 1998 Department for Family and Community Services
1998 - 2004 Family and Youth Services, Department of Human Services
2004 - 2006 Children, Youth and Family Services, Department for Families and Communities
2006 - 2011 Families SA, Department for Families and Communities
2011 - 2016 Families SA, Department for Education and Child Development
2011 - 2018 Department for Communities and Social Inclusion
2016 - Department for Child Protection
2018 - Department of Human Services
Sources used to compile this entry: Raynes, Cameron, A Little Flour and a Few Blankets: An Administrative History of Aboriginal Affairs in South Australia, State Records of South Australia, Adelaide, 2002, 162 pp; State Records of South Australia, 'Agency Details: GRG52 Aborigines' Office and successor agencies', in State Records of South Australia, ArchivesSearch, http://archives.sa.gov.au.
Prepared by: Karen George and Gary George
Created: 25 January 2012, Last modified: 7 June 2012
Last updated: 7 August 2023
Cite this: https://www.findandconnect.gov.au/ref/sa/biogs/SE01102b.htm
First published by the Find & Connect Web Resource Project for the Commonwealth of Australia, 2011
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