Wikipedia tells us that ‘Wauba Debar’ (1792–1832) was a ‘female Aboriginal Tasmanian’ who is buried in the east coast Tasmanian town of Bicheno. She was a strong swimmer who rescued two sealers, one of them her husband, when their ship was wrecked about 1 km from shore during a storm. Wauba Debar died in a boat off the coast whilst travelling towards the Furneaux Group and her body was brought ashore and buried. In this presentation we will interrogate primary and secondary sources to show the story of ‘Wauba Debar’ is a modern myth created in the 19th and 20th centuries and very little of the above information is correct.
Louise Zarmati has had a varied career as a teacher, archaeologist and museum educator. She has a PhD in History from Deakin University and a Master of Philosophy degree in archaeology and heritage management from the University of Cambridge. Louise is a Senior Lecturer in Humanities and Social Sciences Education at the University of Tasmania.
Bradley Wood is a writer, historical researcher and member of the Launceston Historical Society Committee. He is a partner with Louise Zarmati in an education consultancy business that develops learning materials for libraries, museums, heritage sites and schools. Bradley's article, “The Mysterious Journey of Captain Charles Bayley’s Cane” was a finalist in the Forty South Van Diemen History Prize and was published in The Van Diemen Anthology 2021.