Our Indigenous Heroes - They Also Served
News – October 2025
Welcome to our news.
While launching the website has taken time, we’ve been actively working behind the scenes and are still testing features as challenges arise. We aim to create a unique platform for Indigenous families to share the stories of their veterans—a space distinct from other sites and dedicated to honouring Indigenous heroes.
We appreciate the work of previous researchers, authors, and historians who laid the foundations for recognising Indigenous veterans. So far, we have uploaded available veteran names from national sources like the Australian War Memorial. Information is cross-checked for accuracy before inclusion, as online data may often be unreliable.
Our research: Our volunteers now face the task of filling the information gaps for each Veteran, beginning with Service Records, which offer details depending on the conflict or era. We also search official Births, Deaths and Marriages records, though access varies by state due to privacy laws. Earlier records may not exist, especially for veterans’ pre-citizenship, whose details might appear only in Mission or Aboriginal Affairs records.
World War II service records often include birth dates, but these aren’t always accurate. Divorce and court records, where available, help complete each veteran's life story. Official war history sites—state and national libraries and archives—serve as our primary sources; we also consult trusted books and secondary resources, all referenced on our site.
Cemetery and burial records provide additional family information, but require careful verification, as do ancestry and family tree records. Heritage confirmation remains challenging; we collaborate closely with Local Land Councils and Indigenous volunteers, particularly through AIATSIS, which holds extensive genealogical collections.
We prioritise consultation with families and follow cultural protocols led by Indigenous team members. Our research covers many areas, which we will highlight in ongoing updates.
During our first year, we are concentrating on Wiradjuri locations and the Torres Strait Islands. Once complete, we will publish a book for these mobs of our research. These books will be able to be purchased by families of the veterans included, and other places like libraries.
Website Update: Each month, this section will list veterans whose records have been updated or added. Recently, we organised thousands of documents compiled over two years, ready to enrich our site. I’ve focused on Colonial Navies, updating 71 records for men in the Victorian Naval Reserve (1850–1900). Confirming apical ancestry for this period has been difficult as details such as physical descriptions are only the are notes on records held by the Archives, so further evidence is needed and considering the timeframe, this may be an impossibility. You will find all but two of these men are listed “unconfirmed as Aboriginal”.
As we go through each veteran record, we will note where we have proven apical ancestry, or where and who it has been done by previously…eg: The Australian War Memorial is a trusted source for this proof.
The team is also working on the photographs for the site. Some WWII service records include photos, though not all do, and photo availability varies. The images are typically small and require resizing and editing. Additionally, we are reviewing the copyright status of each photo and requesting permission to use family photographs that have not been generated by the government.
Please contact us if you have any information that can help us, or if you know of anyone who would like to help. This work requires a person to think like a detective and think outside the box. It’s fun, hard, emotional, and the stories can sometimes be shocking, but it is very rewarding and gives a sense of achievement with each record completed.
We are committed to documenting as many of over 14,600 recognised Indigenous servicemen and women as possible, for as long as we can.
NON-EUROPEAN SAILORS ENLISTED IN THE VICTORIAN NAVAL RESERVE
The following names have been extracted and transcribed from the records held by the National Archives of Australia: Series B5493 – Victorian Naval Reserves-Sandridge and Williamstown. The Friends of Cerberus website also researched these forces and the men who served.
Only 2 men on this list have been confirmed as having Aboriginal Heritage. Thomas Bungalene and Sandridge Darkey. The remainder have not been proven as having Aboriginal Heritage.
My plan at this stage is to post regularly to our mailing list and to the site. Please keep a lookout for the Births, Deaths and Marriages restrictions per state on the website.
Cheers, keep safe and keep happy,
Zita-Editor
