Over the last fortnight, the Koori Community Research Hub in the Mall has helped Armidale's Indigenous community members discover their family roots.
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"It's a place downtown where people can have a yarn, talk about women in their families, and chase up family trees," organiser Gabi Briggs, photographer and Ambeyang / Gumbaynggirr woman, said.
Urala Inba (Anaiwan for "camp fire") runs at 173 Beardy Street from July 24 to August 6, part of Renew Armidale's scheme to revitalise the city centre.
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Ten to 15 people visit each day, Ms Briggs said, while Uralla Elders and the Armidale Secondary College Aboriginal Studies classes have come for workshops.
"It's important to have a space like this," Ms Briggs said, "and understand who you are, your story, and how you connect to this place."
Visitors use workbooks to draw family trees and timelines starting from 1830 ("when this country was invaded," Ms Briggs said); identify knowledge keepers ("who in their family would have stories about people or family trees"); and write about the oldest matriarch they've been able to chase. They also examine decades-old photos, to identify ancestors and relatives.
Ms Briggs' grandmother, Pat Cohen, provided many of the pictures. She wrote about her experiences as a member of the Stolen Generation, and the history of the region's clans in Ingelba and the Five Black Matriarchs (1990).
"I feel like what I'm doing is an extension of my Nan's work to help the community," Ms Briggs said. "When we have people in here, we've had to reference her book so many times, because it's got so much information in it."
Ms Briggs was surprised to constantly realise how connected she was to so many Indigenous people in the region.
Most are descended from a localised Anaiwan woman who married a convict. (Ms Briggs is in the sixth generation of descent.)
"Some people didn't really know much about their ancestors," Ms Briggs said. "They might have a name, even just for their grandparents... And if the elders didn't know, the kids definitely know less."
Callum Clayton-Dixon, Ambeyang man and UNE Aboriginal linguist and historian, showed visitors how to use Trove (the National Library of Australia's online database) to find documents relating to their ancestors.
Two people came to the hub together; Mr Clayton-Dixon found a newspaper story describing a boxing match between their ancestors.
"They had no idea they were connected in some way," Ms Briggs said.
Ms Briggs hoped the hub will lead to a dedicated space for family research, "led by Blackfellas for Aboriginal people", like Moree's Dhiiyaan Centre. The space, she envisaged, would be somewhere people could feel comfortable and relax.
"That's where you get the best yarns about family history," Ms Briggs said. "In the most casual way, people will start talking about people you've never heard of before."
Ms Briggs would like other services - LinkUp NSW (which helps members of the Stolen Generation trace their families), or the Armidale & District Historical Society - to be involved.
"I haven't been in contact with them," she said. "This is just a start; it's a pilot. It's an experiment to see whether people actually want to engage with family history - and people do. People want to know a bit more."
The research hub, Ms Briggs said, will also help her photograph more of the region's Koori matriarchs, continuing her February exhibition.
"It's a celebration; we're trying to honour Aboriginal matriarchs in the community and what they've done."
The hub is sponsored by the University of New England's Oorala Aboriginal Centre, and supported by the Country Arts Support Program (Regional Arts NSW), and Arts North West.