The Wreck Bay Community

The Wreck Bay Community

The cultural heritage of the Wreck Bay Community is deeply embedded in the surrounding land and waters of Jervis Bay. The natural and social histories are intertwined and reflects on relationship between Wreck Bay people and the natural environment, from traditional times until the present day.

The lands belonging to the Wreck Bay Community form part of the broader Jervis Bay landscape. The culture, history and heritage of Wreck Bay and its people is closely associated with the culture, history and heritage of the whole Jervis Bay region. Wreck Bay culture and history did not develop in isolation from the rest of Australia and it has many features in common with other Aboriginal cultures, such as a shared belief system that emphasises family relationships and connections with the land. Anthropologist Debbie Bird Rose describes the relationship between Aboriginal people and their country as being:

• “Intense, intimate, full of responsibilities and when all is well, friendly. It is a kinship Relationship, and like relations among kin, there are obligations of nurturance. People and country take care of each other” (Rose 1996:49).

These shared beliefs are reflected in creation stories such as Biame, which are familiar to all Aboriginal Australians of south-eastern Australia.