Alfred Wernam Canning(21 February 1860 – 22 May 1936) was an Australian surveyor. He is best known as the originator of theCanning Stock RouteinWestern Australia,a cattle track running 1,850 kilometres (1,150 mi) through remote desert country betweenHalls CreekandWiluna.He also surveyed the route for the inauguralrabbit-proof fence.
Early life
editCanning was born on 21 February 1860 inCampbellfield, Victoria.He was the son of Lucy (née Mason) and William Canning, a farmer. He was educated at Carlton College inMelbournebefore joining the New South Wales Lands Department as a cadet in the survey branch. Canning was appointed as a licensed surveyor in 1882. He was stationed for periods inBega,Cooma,andBathurst.[1]
Western Australia
editIn 1893, during theWestern Australian gold rush,Canning moved to Western Australia and joined theDepartment of Lands and Surveys.He was initially stationed in the state's south and "soon proved himself a first-class bushman and reliable surveyor".[1]
In 1901 a royal commission resulted in Canning being commissioned to survey a route for a barrier fence across the State. Construction of the fence, known as theNo. 1 Rabbit Proof Fencewas completed in 1907. When completed it was the longest line of unbroken fence in the world.
Canning Stock Route
editCanning is best known for surveying a stock route for bringing cattle 1,500 kilometres (930 mi) overland from theKimberleydistrict to the goldfields in 1906 and 1907. He returned the following year to commence construction of 51 wells which were set one days march (20 kilometres or 12 miles) apart to feed travelling livestock. The route was completed in 1910 and runs fromHalls CreektoWiluna.
Canning received a hero's welcome on his return toPerth,however his cook Edward Blake alleged the party had ill-treatedAboriginals,coerced Aboriginal men to locate water by force feeding them salt, destroyed water holes and kidnapped Aboriginal women for sex.[2]After PremierNewton Moorefailed to act on his claims Blake took them to the newspapers which prompted Moore to call a Royal Commission.
"It was necessary at times to use chains on our guides but we padded them to make sure they did not chafe the men's necks...they were happy with the arrangement."
—Evidence given before the Royal Commission by surveyor Hubert Trotman
The Commissioner of police admitted that police were forced to chain the guides due to their unwillingness to join the expedition. The continued chaining was justified on the grounds that they would have run off jeopardising the expedition. After three weeks of questions and replies the Royal Commission exonerated the expedition members of all charges.[3]: 168–171
In 1929 at the age of 68, Canning was commissioned to complete a restoration of the wells.
Personal life and legacy
editTheCanning Stock Routeand the FederalDivision of Canningare named after him.[4]
He died in Perth in 1936 and was buried atKarrakatta Cemetery.[5]A public collection was started to raise funds for a memorial to Canning but the memorial was never built at that time.[6]However a memorial was made in the 1950s.[7]
The speciesHemichoanella canningiis named in honour of Canning.
References
edit- ^abSlee, John (1979)."Canning, Alfred Wernam (1860–1936)".Australian Dictionary of Biography.Vol. 7. Melbourne University Press.
- ^"Western Australia: Land and People".Western Australian Museum.Archived fromthe originalon 26 September 2007.Retrieved19 April2021.
- ^Austen, Tom (1998).A Cry in the Wind: Conflict in Western Australia, 1829–1929.Darlington, Western Australia: Darlington Publishing Group.ISBN0-9587106-2-7.OCLC1015983705.
- ^"Profile of the electoral division of Canning (WA)".Australian Electoral Commission.19 September 2019.Retrieved19 April2021.
- ^"Summary Of Record Information: Alfred Wernam Canning".Metropolitan Cemeteries Board, Government of Western Australia.19 April 2021.Retrieved19 April2021.
- ^Western Australian exploration: A.W. Canning memorial.Perth, Western Australia. 1937.OCLC762753373.
{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^"A. W. Canning Memorial Unveiled in Perth".The West Australian.16 June 1950. p. 7.Retrieved19 April2021– via Trove, National Library of Australia.
Further reading
edit- Warwick, Mark (1993). "Alfred Canning and the Rabbit-Proof Fence".Bushdriver.16(5). Turramurra, New South Wales: Ric Williams Associates.ISSN0155-0535.
- Smith, Eleanor (1966).The Beckoning West: The Story of H.S. Trotman and the Canning Stock Route.Sydney: Angus and Robertson.OCLC1199386258.
External links
edit- The Canning Stock Route(Map) (3rd ed.). 1:1,000,000. Westprint. Archived fromthe originalon 24 August 2006.Retrieved19 April2021.
- "WA Snapshots".Historical Encyclopedia of Western Australia.University of Western Australia. 13 January 2006. Archived fromthe originalon 3 May 2006.Retrieved20 April2021.