David Unaipon

Lore & Background

David Unaipon was born on 28 September 1872 at the Point McLeay Mission in South Australia, the son of James Ngunaitponi, the mission's first Aboriginal convert to Christianity, and his wife Nymbulda. He attended the mission school from age seven and at thirteen was sent to Adelaide to work as a servant for Charles Burney Young, who encouraged his interests in music, science, and philosophy. Unaipon returned to the mission in 1890, where he learned Latin and Greek, trained as a bootmaker, and became the church organist. He married Katherine Carter on 4 January 1902, and they had one son.

Reader's Guide

David Unaipon's significance lies in his dual role as an inventor and a cultural intermediary. He registered ten patents between 1909 and 1944, including a sheep shearing mechanism, and predicted that an aeroplane could be developed based on boomerang aerodynamics. As a writer, he collected Aboriginal oral traditions and published essays and stories in newspapers and pamphlets, funding his speaking tours. His book-length manuscript Legendary Tales of the Australian Aborigines was published in 1930 under the name of anthropologist William Ramsay Smith after Unaipon sold the copyright. Unaipon was frequently called upon by the Australian government as a spokesperson for Indigenous people, but his support for assimilation and missionary efforts led to clashes with more progressive Aboriginal activists. Since 1995, he has been featured on the Australian $50 note, cementing his place in national memory.

Did You Know?

• Unaipon registered 10 patents between 1909 and 1944, including a sheep shearing mechanism.
• His book-length manuscript Legendary Tales of the Australian Aborigines was published in 1930 under the name of anthropologist William Ramsay Smith.
• He was described in the late 1920s as one of the best-known Aboriginal people in Australia.
• Unaipon has featured on the Australian $50 note since 1995.