Mr Miles, Mr Oldfield and Professor Huxley: Early Thoughts on the Origins of the Australians

Abstract

This essay very briefly surveys the complex history of thinking about the human history of the continent that evolved from the very late 18th century though to the foundation of Australia in 1901. This ‘long’ 19th century saw the rise of the new disciplines of anthropology, ethnology, physical anthropology, geology, palaeontology and archaeology that either, in whole or in part, provided the framework for an inquiry into the origins of the Australians. It also saw the transformation of Australia from a collection of colonies into a single nation.