| Site Name | Mirki / Florida Station (1) |
| Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Place Name | Murwangi |
| Language Group, Nation or People | Yolngu, Djinang |
| Present State/Territory | NT |
| Colony/State/Territory at the time | SA |
| Police District | Palmerston (no police presence in Arnhem Land at that time) |
| Latitude | -12.486 |
| Longitude | 134.935 |
| Date | Between 1 Jan 1885 and 31 Dec 1885 |
| Attack Time | Day |
| Victims | Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander People |
| Victim Descriptions | Warrior(s) |
| Victims Killed | 40 |
| Victims Killed Notes | Yolngu clans poisoned by horse meat distributed by Florida Station manager. |
| Attackers | Colonists |
| Attacker Descriptions | Manager(s) |
| Attackers Killed | 0 |
| Attackers Killed Notes | |
| Transport | Horse |
| Motive | Reprisal |
| Weapons Used | Poison |
| Narrative | Gwenda Baker (2018, p 8) recorded the pastoral history of this area: 'The cattle station people arrived in 1885. They were antagonistic towards the Yolngu from the start. Macartney and Mayne set up Florida Station near the present day town of Ramingining. When some Yolngu killed a cow for food, the station owners killed a group of Yolngu with poisoned horsemeat. This started a guerrilla war by the Yolngu. The station workers had guns. Yolngu had spears and knowledge of fire and the country. Yolngu killed station workers and drove off the cattle. By 1893 it was all over. The station was abandoned and the remaining cattle moved south to another location.'
Trudgen wrote (2000, pp 19-20): '... some months later the pastoralists came with one of their wagons, offering horsemeat to many of the clans... That evening they ate, thanking the pastoralists for their good gifts. It was only when some of the people became violently ill that the Yolngu realised the Balanda had tricked them with some strange sorcery... Members of many clans died that day... Yolngu struck back, fighting with spears against muskets and carbines. Soon the skirmishes became running battles'. Men, women and children were killed by the poisoning. The estimate of 40 killed is for the poisoning incident only. Many more would have been killed in the ongoing conflict. |
| Sources | Baker 2018, p 8; Trudgen 2000, pp 19-20. (Sources PDF) |
| Corroboration Rating | ** |
Colonial Frontier Massacres
in Australia, 1788-1930
