The United Aborigines Mission (UAM) was wound up at the end of 2020. In 2022, the Find & Connect web resource was advised by Sharrock Pitman lawyers that the following postal address was now the only contact information for UAM Ministries.
PO Box 172 Vermont, Victoria, 3133
David Reid, Minister of Religion and Accountant and former director of the UAM, swore an affidavit for the Yoorrook Justice Commission on 2 November 2023 which stated that the historical records of UAM, which were in storage in Williamstown, Victoria, were all destroyed following flooding in around July 2020, which was said to have resulted in “serious contamination”.
The affidavit states that the destroyed records comprised “federal office files” and that “very few files produced by the NSW, SA and WA offices were in the archives in Melbourne. Those which did come to Melbourne were mostly copies of correspondence relating to the operations in those states. The federal office did not have files for the children’s homes run by the Mission in NSW (Bomaderry) and SA (Colebrook) as these were State Council responsibilities”.
Reid swore that “I am not aware of any other UAM historical records”, other than those that were transferred to the State Library of South Australia and Aboriginal Affairs NSW in late 2022.
Reid’s affidavit contradicts the information that the Find & Connect web resource has compiled from publicly available sources about UAM historical records known to have existed.
These records are held by United Aborigines Mission (1929 - 2020).
United Aborigines Mission, Records of activities in Western Australia is a collection held by UAM Archives.
Update on the records of the United Aborigines Mission, July 2022
The Find & Connect web resource contains descriptions of records known to have been held by the United Aborigines Mission. These descriptions have been compiled from publicly available sources, such as the publications Finding your own way (2005) and Connecting Kin (1998). The UAM provided access to the records to researchers during the Mullighan Inquiry in South Australia (2004-2008), who recorded details about the contents of UAM’s collection.
Former residents of institutions run by UAM have advised the Find & Connect web resource that since the end of 2018, it has not been possible to get access to UAM records, or to get in contact with representatives of UAM.
In October 2019, Sharrock Pitman Legal Pty Ltd, a legal firm based in Melbourne, advised the Find & Connect web resource that the United Aborigines Mission and UAM Ministries were in the process of being wound up.
As of December 2021, UAM Ministries’s registration status with the Australian Charities and Not for Profit Commission is “voluntarily revoked”, “no longer operating”.
Research and consultation by the Find & Connect web resource team and other stakeholders has been unable to establish the current whereabouts of the records, which were last known to be located in Williamstown, Victoria.
This is a distressing situation for former residents of UAM institutions and for their family members. Support is available from organisations such as Link Up and the Find & Connect support services.
If you can provide any further information please contact the Find & Connect web resource. We will update this website should any new information come to light.
Please direct any inquiries about records access to Sharrock Pitman lawyers, who advised the South Australian Attorney-General in July 2021 that copies of relevant records they hold can be provided to survivors if a formal request is made in writing.