The Boundary Rider’s Daughter
by Evalene Wallbank
ISBN 978-0-85905-687-8, (New, 2017), A4, 100pp, illustrated, 290 grams
$30.00* + POST
Beyondie Station at Kumarina, north of Meekatharra, was taken up in the 1920s by Bob George, a Rabbit Proof Fence boundary rider. He protected a young part-Aboriginal girl, later marrying her. Yibbie had ten children with Bob George and later attachments, and most were sent by Bob to Sister Kate’s home in Perth for their education. Of the children today, two of the girls survive. One is a Perth lawyer, and the other, Evalene, was involved in a pastoral life. This is the interesting story of growing up in the wildest bush and in the equally feral children’s home. The George family were well-known in the upper Murchison/Gascoyne region and this autobiography is an interesting and important reflection of life in that country. It was written by 2003 but ignored by publishers, perhaps because its content was not considered abrasive enough in the ‘culture wars’ of that time.
Published 19 December 2017.