Kaltjiti, formerly and also still known as Fregon, is an
Aboriginal community in
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY lands) in
South Australia
South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...
, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being
Amata
According to Roman mythology, Amata (also called Palanto) was the wife of Latinus, king of the Latins, and the mother of their only child, Lavinia. In the Aeneid of Virgil, she commits suicide during the conflict between Aeneas and Turnus over ...
,
Ernabella
Pukatja (formerly Ernabella) is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pipalyatjara, Fregon/Kaltjiti, ...
/
Pukatja,
Pipalyatjara,
Indulkana and
Mimili
Mimili is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pukatja, Kaltjiti, Indulkana and Pipalyatjara). At ...
).
Geography
Kaltjiti () is situated approximately south of the
Musgrave Ranges
Musgrave Ranges is a mountain range in Central Australia, straddling the boundary of South Australia (Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara) and the Northern Territory ( MacDonnell Shire), extending into Western Australia. It is between the Grea ...
and lies west of the
Everard Ranges
The Everard Ranges, officially known as The Everard Ranges, is a range of low rounded granite hills located in the Australian state of South Australia in the Aṉangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands about west of Mintabie. It is of Pa ...
. Kaltjiti is also situated approximately from the
Stuart Highway
Stuart Highway is a major Australian highway. It runs from Darwin, in the Northern Territory, via Tennant Creek and Alice Springs, to Port Augusta in South Australia; a distance of . Its northern and southern extremities are segments of Aus ...
. Kaltjiti lies directly south of
Umuwa
Umuwa is an Aboriginal community in Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY lands) in South Australia, serving as an administrative centre for the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pipalyatjara, Pukatja/Ernabella ...
and
Ernabella
Pukatja (formerly Ernabella) is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pipalyatjara, Fregon/Kaltjiti, ...
/
Pukatja. The community straddles the
Officer Creek, which in turn flows from South Australia's highest mountain,
Mount Woodroffe
Mount Woodroffe (dual-named as "Ngarutjaranya/Mount Woodroofe") is a mountain in the Australian state of South Australia, located in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara lands in the state's northwest. It is South Australia's highest peak, a ...
. The creek is usually a dry sandy bed and only flows at times of very high rainfall.
Climate
Based on the climate records from
Marla
Marla is a town and locality in the Australian state of South Australia located in the state's north-west about north-west of the state capital of Adelaide and about south of the town of Alice Springs in the Northern Territory.
History
Marla ...
, Kaltjiti experiences summer maximum temperatures of an average of in January and a winter maximum average temperature of in June. Overnight lows range from a mean minimum temperature of in January to in June.
Annual rainfall averages .
Demographics
In the
2016 Australian census, Kaltjiti's population was 220 people.
History
In 1986 the population was recorded as 268; in 1991, it was 310 and in 1996 it was 299, according to the
Australian Bureau of Statistics' 1999 Yearbook.
In the 2001
Australian Census
The Census in Australia, officially the Census of Population and Housing, is the national census in Australia that occurs every five years. The census collects key demographic, social and economic data from all people in Australia on census nig ...
, the population was 245.
In 2006 and 2011, only the total count of
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
people for "Kaltjiti (Fregon) and Inintata Homelands" area is available, with a total of 212 in 2006
and 242 in 2011.
History
19th century
The first recording by non-
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
of a community at Kaltjiti was by explorer
Ernest Giles. In September 1873 during his second trip into the South Australian interior, he and another party member, William Tietkens, encountered 200 male Aboriginal men. The Europeans fired shots, allegedly in retaliation for the throwing of spears. The Europeans escaped unharmed; there is no mention of Aboriginal casualties. Giles later acknowledged that Aboriginal aggression was usually due to white
trespass
Trespass is an area of tort law broadly divided into three groups: trespass to the person, trespass to chattels, and trespass to land.
Trespass to the person historically involved six separate trespasses: threats, assault, battery, woundi ...
on black land. Giles named the river where this occurred "The Officer", by which it was known until the 1930s when it was renamed Officer Creek.
20th century
Harold Brown established the first European settlement in 1934 when he was granted the water permit for the Shirley Well block, 60 kilometres south of Ernabella. The well on the north side of the Officer creek was dug near the existing bore and the Browns built their house on the south side.
Brown and his colleague Allan Brumby had been encouraged by
R. M. Williams' stories of successfully hunting
dingoes to facilitate a cull encouraged by Government bounties for dingo scalps to take up "dogging" themselves. In about 1929 they headed west on a dogging and prospecting trip that took them through the
Musgrave and
Mann Ranges and as far as
Uluru
Uluru (; pjt, Uluṟu ), also known as Ayers Rock ( ) and officially gazetted as UluruAyers Rock, is a large sandstone formation in the centre of Australia. It is in the southern part of the Northern Territory, southwest of Alice Spring ...
. They climbed the rock and left a message in a bottle for the next visitors. By the early 1930s Brown had established a base-camp in the
Petermann Ranges and was dogging as far west as the
Rawlinson and
Warburton Ranges
Warburton or Warburton Ranges is an Aboriginal Australian community in Western Australia, just to the south of the Gibson Desert and located on the Great Central Road (part of the Outback Way) and Gunbarrel Highway. At the , Warburton had a pop ...
. Brown sank a successful well near
Officer Creek, south of the
Musgrave Ranges
Musgrave Ranges is a mountain range in Central Australia, straddling the boundary of South Australia (Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara) and the Northern Territory ( MacDonnell Shire), extending into Western Australia. It is between the Grea ...
, and claimed the government reward. He constructed a mud hut and a dug-out dwelling at Shirley Well and ran some sheep, but continued to make long dogging trips westwards. Brown had an Aboriginal wife and several children, but in 1934 he married a white woman in Alice Springs. He abandoned his Aboriginal wife and their children, and his new wife joined him at Shirley Well.
The
South Australian Government
The Government of South Australia, also referred to as the South Australian Government, SA Government or more formally, His Majesty’s Government, is the Australian state democratic administrative authority of South Australia. It is modelled o ...
resumed Brown's lease in 1939, and
Ernabella
Pukatja (formerly Ernabella) is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pipalyatjara, Fregon/Kaltjiti, ...
(now Pukatja) gained grazing rights there. After the abortive attempt in 1957 to jointly establish outstations west of Ernabella, it was decided in 1960 to establish an outstation on the Shirley Well block under the umbrella of Ernabella. Aboriginal people were camped at Shirley Well permanently, which made it easy to expand the sheep industry to include this area.
Fregon was built with government assistance in 1961 as a base for
cattlemen
A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the ''vaquero'' ...
and their families. According to tradition, the community took the name "Fregon" at that time in honour of a Mr Fregon of
Victoria
Victoria most commonly refers to:
* Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia
* Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada
* Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory
* Victoria, Seychelle ...
who donated £5-10,000 to help missionaries establish a bore at the site. A site was chosen 4-5 kilometres south of Shirley Well on the Officer Creek about 60 kilometres south west of Ernabella. The aim of the outstation was to provide training in cattle work and for the families to have access to traditional country in the sandhills to the west. Fregon was administered through Ernabella and it was not until 1968 that it had its own
airstrip
An aerodrome ( Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for pub ...
. It began with a school, a small hospital, a workshop, a small store and staff houses. There were four staff members including a schoolteacher, a nursing sister, an overseer and a cattle manager.
During the late 1970s to early 1980s, Victor Harbor Primary School started a yearly cultural exchange camp for their year 7 students. This camp involved a few days stay in Fregon where students would learn a little bit of local culture and language. This camp still runs as of 2021 and is an important experience for all students involved.
Tuberculosis
Tuberculosis (TB) is an infectious disease usually caused by '' Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can also affect other parts of the body. Most infections show no symptoms, i ...
wiped out the
cattle industry and transport business in the 1980s.
The settlement was funded by the
federal government as an
outstation during the 1980s.
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21st century
It was reported in early 2019 that a new water source had been found at a site near Kaljiti in a "palaeo-valley", where groundwater is held about 90 metres below the surface (existing sources being about 30m down). Core drill samples have been dated at 5–10 million years old. Pipes were temporarily capped, but elder Witjiti George said that he hoped the water could be used to support a cattle herd, helping to create jobs and an ongoing industry for isolated communities. The new source could also provide much needed drinking water. APY Lands general manager Richard King said the origin of the water was yet to be established, but the water is pure, with low salinity. Government experts were working with Flinders University and the CSIRO to learn more about the source.
Facilities
Kaltjiti does not have a permanent police presence. South Australia Police
South Australia Police (SAPOL) is the police force of the Australian state of South Australia. SAPOL is an independent statutory agency of the Government of South Australia directed by the Commissioner of Police, who reports to the Minister for ...
are based at Mimili
Mimili is an Aboriginal community in the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara Lands in South Australia, comprising one of the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pukatja, Kaltjiti, Indulkana and Pipalyatjara). At ...
and run patrols in the area. There is a rudimentary shed structure that serves as a police station when police are present. , the community was served by one community constable.
There is a police station
A police station (sometimes called a "station house" or just "house") is a building which serves to accommodate police officers and other members of staff. These buildings often contain offices and accommodation for personnel and vehicles, ...
at Umuwa
Umuwa is an Aboriginal community in Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY lands) in South Australia, serving as an administrative centre for the six main communities on "The Lands" (the others being Amata, Pipalyatjara, Pukatja/Ernabella ...
, though it has not been permanently manned.
a new, permanent policing complex is being built at Umuwa. It will accommodate officers with specialist response capabilities, as well provide a base for a mobile unit which will be deployed in Kaltjiti, Indulkana and Pipalyatjara. The service will work closely with child protection
Child protection is the safeguarding of children from violence, exploitation, abuse, and neglect. Article 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child provides for the protection of children in and out of the home. One of the ways to e ...
service agencies address child abuse and family violence
Domestic violence (also known as domestic abuse or family violence) is violence or other abuse that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. ''Domestic violence'' is often used as a synonym for '' intimate partner ...
issues. The 2019–2020 Government of South Australia agency budget estimates the completion date as June 2021, with a total spend of .
Kaltjiti has a sealed airstrip
An aerodrome ( Commonwealth English) or airdrome (American English) is a location from which aircraft flight operations take place, regardless of whether they involve air cargo, passengers, or neither, and regardless of whether it is for pub ...
.
Electrical power
Electric power is the rate at which electrical energy is transferred by an electric circuit. The SI unit of power is the watt, one joule per second. Standard prefixes apply to watts as with other SI units: thousands, millions and billions o ...
to the community is supplied from the central powerhouse at Umuwa, while water is provided from six bores—a portion of which is desalinated—and placed in storage tanks for pumping to the community. The desalinated water is supplied to the clinic, hot water services and dedicated drinking water taps in private houses and the store, while untreated water is supplied for other uses in dwellings and around the community. All water supplied to the community is disinfected using UV sterilisation. The desalination plant was commissioned in 2005 by SA Water
SA Water is a government business enterprise wholly owned by the Government of South Australia.
History
SA Water was established by the proclamation of the ''South Australian Water Corporation Act 1994'' on 1 July 1995. Prior to this its predec ...
and has a total capacity of per day.
Kaltjiti has the Fregon Anangu School. Technical and further education ( TAFE) opportunities are provided to the community.
There is a health clinic run by Nganampa Health Council with a doctor who visits both Fregon and Pukatja communities, and a general store supplied weekly via road train and forming the main supply for the APY lands.
Kaltjiti has an Australian Rules Football field and a basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular court, compete with the primary objective of shooting a basketball (approximately in diameter) through the defender's h ...
court with night lights. As with most APY settlements, Australian Broadcasting Corporation
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...
and Special Broadcasting Service
The Special Broadcasting Service (SBS) is an Australian hybrid-funded public service broadcaster. About 80 percent of funding for the company is derived from the Australian Government. SBS operates six TV channels ( SBS, SBS Viceland, SBS World ...
television are available.
A mobile polling booth visits Kaltjiti every 4 years for elections of the Parliament of South Australia
The Parliament of South Australia is the bicameral legislature of the Australian state of South Australia. It consists of the 47-seat House of Assembly ( lower house) and the 22-seat Legislative Council (upper house). General elections are ...
.
A permit is required for a member of the public to visit any community on the APY Lands, as they are freehold
Freehold may refer to:
In real estate
*Freehold (law), the tenure of property in fee simple
* Customary freehold, a form of feudal tenure of land in England
* Parson's freehold, where a Church of England rector or vicar of holds title to benefice ...
lands owned by the Aboriginal people.
Art centre
The community runs Kaltjiti Arts. It is one of ten Indigenous-owned and -governed art centres that go to make up the APY Art Centre Collective, established in 2013.
Notes
Citations
Sources
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Further reading
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{{authority control
Aboriginal communities in South Australia
Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara
Australian Aboriginal missions
Towns in South Australia