43 Mackay Street, Seddon
William Cooper was a resident of Footscray and Seddon. He was a prominent activist for Aboriginal citizenship rights and secretary of the Australian Aborigines’ League. 43 Mackay Street, Seddon – along with William Cooper’s other houses at 73 Southhampton Street, Footscray and 120 Ballarat Road, Footscray – were all early headquarters of the Australian Aborigines’ League. Cooper’s house in Seddon was within easy walking distance from Marg Tucker’s house at 38 Pentland Parade, Seddon. It was one of a pair (at 43 & 45) single-fronted Edwardians that have been modified over the years.
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Cover letter for Cooper’s Petition to the KingAs well as organising events, being a founding member and Secretary of the Aborigines Advancement League and working on petitions, William Cooper was an avid letter writer. In various archives, there are letters and petitions that show William Cooper’s different addresses. The cover letter for Cooper’s Petition to the King shows that he was living at 43 Mackay Street, Seddon at the time. |
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Reply from Senator Foll, Minister for the InteriorThis letter was sent to William Cooper when he lived at 43 Mackay Street, Seddon. It is from Senator Foll, Minister for the Interior, to say that Cooper’s Petition would not be presented to the King as, according to the Minister, “no good purpose would be served”. Sally Russell Cooper said that her father’s tireless work to gain rights for Aboriginal people such as collecting the 1814 signatures from Victoria and New South Wales for the petition to the King, ‘was mostly done by foot’. ‘He walked everywhere…When he found out that the petition never left Australia he was a very disappointed man.’ (Interview with Aunty Sally Russell Cooper at Footscray Elderly Care Centre, Koori Oral History Program, 1990). (Petition to the King) |
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Letter sent to the Prime Minister from Senator Foll, Minister for the InteriorThis letter was sent to the Prime Minister from Senator Foll, Minister. The PM had asked about Cooper’s Petition, Foll advises the PM that “no good purpose would be gained by submitting the petition to His Majesty the King” and that his officers are “fully appreciative of their responsibility in connections with the welfare of aboriginals”. |
Additional Resources
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that these pages may contain the names, images and voices of people who have passed away.
