History
The Aboriginal Waanyi people have lived in the gorge area for at least 17,000 years and know this place as Boodjamulla, or Rainbow Serpent country. Lawn Hill Gorge is sacred to the Waanyi people. Midden heaps, camp sites, grinding stones, and rock art evidence the importance of this place. Today, the Waanyi people help manage the park.
The park has a rich pastoral history and until December 1984 was part of Lawn Hill Station, which was once one of Queensland's largest cattle properties. The cattle station was formed from several leases originally granted in the 1870s. Sebastiana Maia, who owned that station from 1976, returned 122 km² on the lease to the state in 1984, on the condition it be managed for the public's benefit. In 1992, another 1,350 km² was given to the crown to extend the park's boundaries.
The Riversleigh and Musselbrook sections were amalgamated into the park in 1992. The Riversleigh Fossil Fields Section of the park is a World Heritage Site and contains many fossil remains. Animal bones dating back 25 million years are preserved in the lime-rich sediments.
Read more about this topic: Boodjamulla National Park
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