Our Story
From one man’s passion to a museum for everyone
The Yung Balug Aboriginal Artefacts museum began with one man’s keen interest for local Aboriginal history and the environment. Paul Haw is the founder of the museum and loves to passionately share the collection of Aboriginal artefacts and his vast knowledge of local Aboriginal history and the local environment. The museum began with Paul’s small collection of locally-found Aboriginal grinding stones and axes mainly donated by local farmers that he would show to anyone who visited. As his collection grew, he realised that there was a huge need for education in Aboriginal History. The history is very rich and interesting, yet many do not know anything about the way the past owners of the land used to live. Paul knew that if he didn’t share the knowledge he has gathered over the years, much of the history of the local Aborigines would be lost.
Paul’s dream was to set up a museum to house the collection in the township of Boort. Many setbacks have meant that the museum in town may be many years off, so in the meantime he launched the “Yung Balug Aboriginal Artefacts Museum” from a renovated shed on his own property. Paul fondly refers to the museum “The Temporary Keeping Place” because he is keeping this collection ready for when a museum can be eventually set up in town.
The Yung Balug Museum has already outgrown the space and we hope to open an additional larger complex later in 2023 on the same site.
Paul Haw
Paul Haw was born in 1946 and grew up on the family farm fronting the Loddon River at Yando. He spent many hours with his brothers trapping and ferreting rabbits out of cooking mounds on its banks. He often wondered what had become of the local Aborigines. History taught at school at the time was basic and Paul formed the opinion that the local Aborigines were extinct. During those years various church members from Boort would visit the Balranald Aboriginal Mission where Paul first met with Aboriginal people in their simple corrugated dwellings - a tin hall and church. The Boort Community delivered food and clothing to the mission and a group often sang songs together at a time when Aborigines were restricted in their activities.
Later Paul served as a National Serviceman in Vietnam with the artillery where he almost lost his life in a mine incident which killed two others and wounded five. This event and other factors influenced his thinking towards the environment and fostered his philosophy of treating all people as equals. Paul took out a Trust For Nature Covenant on his property to protect the environment and Aboriginal sites and was the first in Victoria erect a sign on his front gate recognising the past and ongoing ownership by the Dja Dja Wurrung.
After meeting Gary Murray, a direct descendant of the Boort clan, Paul was inspired to learn more about their culture and country. He spent many weekends studying the landscape and utilising his innate ability to read nature holding the belief that all Australians should learn this important part of their history.
As a result of Paul's passion many farmers when retiring were inspired to leave their collections with with Paul, now the collections are stored in the “Keeping Place” for everyone to appreciate.
“To be a true Australian, it is important to learn about the First Australians.”
Read the Book
Paul has shared much of his knowledge of local Aboriginal history in a book co-authored with historian Margaret Munro titled Footprints across the Loddon Plains. The book is available for purchase at the museum.
Buy the book for $70 at the museum, or contact us to purchase for $90 with postage.
Watch the Film
A documentary movie directed by Bill Code called The Lake of Scars was released in 2022 documenting Paul’s passion for setting up the museum.
For further information about this film including streaming, public viewings and DVDs, visit the official Lake of Scars website