Littlewell is now open for visitors
A special place of belonging, heritage and healing.
On the outskirts of Mingenew, in the heart of the Midwest, there is a former Aboriginal Reserve called Littlewell. Back in 2010, a group of 30 Elders and former residents from the reserve started the Littlewell Working Group with the vision to protect the reserve as a place of belonging, history, heritage and healing.
For the last 8 years, the group have been working hard to create a heritage trail to celebrate and commemorate the lives and stories of the Aboriginal families who resided there. Their hope was for a legacy to inform the wider community about the history of Aboriginal Reserves in the Midwest.
With the support of people like you, Community First Development (formerly ICV) has worked in partnership with the Littlewell Working Group and the Mingenew Shire since 2014 to preserve the stories of Elders. Together, we’ve created an online video resource to make it easy for people to access information about the reserve and watch the stories of Elders and families who lived there.
The working group also asked the Mingenew Shire and Community First Development to help secure funding which we were able to do through Lotterywest. This funding helped set up a walking trail and install interpretative sinage at stopping points around the Littlewell Heritage Site.
We’re excited to share that the official opening ceremony of the Littlewell Heritage Site took place on 15th March. Community members and tourists are now invited to visit the Site and share in its rich history.
“All our memories go back to the Littlewell Reserve... when we get together, all our stories come out. Our spirits will now be able to rest in peace, knowing that the stories will always be here and will always live on. To have a place now to bring our families – to say this is your history and your culture – is very important.”
