David Unaipon Timeline

By PandaGroup2024

  • Birth of David Unaipon

    Birth of David Unaipon
    On September 28th, 1872, David Unaipon was born in Point Mcleay Mission, South Australia to his parents James Unaipon and Nymbulda Ngunaitponi. David Unaipon was the 4th of 9 children.

  • David Unaipon Education

    David Unaipon Education
    David Unaipon receives education at Point McLeay Mission school from 1879-1885.

  • David Unaipon began to work for C.B Young

    David Unaipon began to work for C.B Young
    At the age of 13 David Unaipon left school and moved to Adelaide to began to work for Politician, C.B Young. C.B Young was a member of the "Aboriginies Friend Association" which was an organization that was concerned with Aboriginal health and welfare. C.B Young encouraged Unaipon to study Philosophy, Literature and Science.

  • David Unaipon moved to Point McLeay Mission

    1890 was the year Unaipon moved back to Point McLeay Mission after studying and working for C.B Young. He then was an apprentice to a bootmaker and was appointed mission organist.

  • David Unaipon marries Katherine Carter (nee Sumner)

    David Unaipon and Katherine Carter (nee Sumner) a Tangani woman from The Coorong, get married.

  • David Unaipon Invents the first straight-line motion shearing machine

    David Unaipon Invents the first straight-line motion shearing machine
    In 1909 Unaipon made the first ever straight-line motion shearing machine, with the help of Herbert Basedow, who was a former South Australia Protector of First Nations.

  • Proposed the boomerang helicopter

    In 1914 David Unaipon proposed that 2 boomerang working in tandem could lift an aircraft up in the air.

  • Accepted commission by University of Adelaide

    In the 1920's Unaipon was accepted a commission by the University of Adelaide to collect Aboriginal stories around SA.

  • Assisted the Bleakley inquiry into Aboriginal welfare

  • David Unaipon publishes "Native Legends"

    David Unaipon publishes "Native Legends"
    David Unaipon became the first ever Indigenous Australian author in 1929 when he published his first book "Native Legends".

  • David Unaipon is awarded a Coronation Medal

    David Unaipon is awarded a Coronation Medal
    As Queen Elizabeth the second was coronated Unaipon was awarded a Coronation medal. This was Unaipons first and last award he ever received.

  • Death of David Unaipon

    Death of David Unaipon
    David Unaipon (the last full blooded member of the Waruwaldi tribe) died on February 7th 1967 at Tailem Bend Hospital. He is buried now in Raukkan (formerly point McLeay) Mission.

  • David Unaipon receives FAW Patricia Weickhardt award

    David Unaipon is awarded the FAW Patricia Weickhardt award for Aboriginal writers.

  • David Unaipon Award was established

    The David Unaipon award is now presented annually in Adelaide to an Indigenous Australian, man or women, who is an emerging writer.

  • Featured on $50 note

    Featured on $50 note
    1995 was the year David Unaipon was nationally recognized and featured on the fifty-dollar note. On Australia's current fifty-dollar note you can see his totem (the black swan) and on the previous fifty-dollar note you would be able to see the mechanical motion sheep shears.

  • UNSW Students study David Unaipon's Boomerang Helicopter theory

    UNSW students were featured in the 'The First Inventors' TV series, building a boomerang powered flying vehicle based of an idea proposed over 100 years ago by David Unaipon.