| Site Name | Burketown |
| Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander Place Name | |
| Language Group, Nation or People | |
| Present State/Territory | QLD |
| Colony/State/Territory at the time | QLD |
| Police District | Burketown |
| Latitude | -17.872 |
| Longitude | 139.642 |
| Date | Between 1 Apr 1868 and 31 May 1868 |
| Attack Time | Day |
| Victims | Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander People |
| Victim Descriptions | |
| Victims Killed | 30 |
| Victims Killed Notes | |
| Attackers | Colonists |
| Attacker Descriptions | Native Police |
| Attackers Killed | 0 |
| Attackers Killed Notes | |
| Transport | Horse |
| Motive | Reprisal |
| Weapons Used | Snider(s) |
| Narrative | In 1868, the Burketown correspondent of the Brisbane Courier (9 June, p 3) reported that D'Arcy Uhr and his detachment of native police had shot a total of 59 Aboriginal people. The first incident involved killing more than 30 people in reprisal for the spearing of several horses close to Burketown. "I much regret to state that the blacks have become very troublesome about here [Burketown] lately. Within ten miles of this place they speared and cut steaks from the rumps of several horses. As soon as it was known, the Native Police, under Sub-inspector Uhr, went out, and, I am informed, succeeded in shooting upwards of thirty blacks." (The Brisbane Courier, 9 Jun 1868) This was followed by more killing at Norman River. |
| Sources | Brisbane Courier, 9 June 1868, p 3 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article1299073; Queenslander, 13 June 1868, p 7 http://nla.gov.au/nla.news-article20319067; Loos, 1982, p 36-37; Ashwin, 2002, p 158; Roberts, 2005, p 12. (Sources PDF) |
| Corroboration Rating | ** |
