Archaeology unearthing the invisible people: European women and children and Aboriginal people at South Australian shore-based whaling stations

Abstract

Archaeological fieldwork in South Australia (the Archaeology of Whaling in South Australia or AWSA project) under the direction of Mark Staniforth, commenced in April 1997, involving the recording and subsequently the excavation of whaling station sites on the Eyre Peninsula, Kangaroo Island, and at Cape Jervis. The aim of this research is to investigate the activities of whalers in South Australia, especially those involved in whaling activity who have been previously neglected, namely women, children and Indigenous peoples. Funding of more than $40,000 for this project and the development of a website has come from a Flinders University URB establishment grant, the Ian Potter Foundation, the Australian National Center for Excellence in Maritime Archaeology (WA Maritime Museum) and a Small ARC grant.