1965 Freedom Ride Blue Plaque Trail

Wayside Chapel

29 Hughes Street, Potts Point NSW 2011

The Chapel was the operational base for the Freedom Ride. It was here that publicity, political support, and communications between the Freedom Riders, their families and the media were coordinated. In his book, A Bastard Like Me, Perkins (1975) writes:

The Ride was co-ordinated at the Wayside Chapel. The Chapel was going to be our contact with all the newspapers, television and radio. We did not think there would be much work involved but the Chapel was completely swamped. Ted was involved with the media and political figures and with the parents.

Former Fire Station

116 Darling Street, Dubbo NSW 2830

From Sydney, the Freedom Riders stopped at Orange and Wellington where they saw clear signs of discrimination but met few people willing to talk.

Arriving in Dubbo on 12 February 1965, the Freedom Riders were disheartened after witnessing fear and silence in Wellington.

Encouraged by Charles Perkins, they decided to continue, but with a new understanding of the challenges ahead. The silence they experienced was not a sign of failure. Instead, it revealed the fear, pressure and control that many Aboriginal communities were living under.

The experience strengthened the Freedom Riders' belief that the Freedom Ride mattered. They realised they were no longer simply gathering information; they were becoming witnesses, allies and advocates for change.

Two Eight Two Eight

28 Bourbah Street, Gulargambone NSW 2828

When the Freedom Riders reached Gulargambone on 13 February, they were given only an hour to visit the local reserve. In that brief visit, something powerful happened. People were willing to talk.

The Freedom Riders heard honest stories about the difficulty of finding regular work and the poor housing conditions Aboriginal people were forced to live in. Daily life was shaped by uncertainty and discrimination. One of the riders, Curthoys (2002), notes in her diary:

Spoke to Mr and Mrs Baxter - very old and very interesting. Apparently, town jobs for Aborigines impossible to get, shearing jobs pay well but are uncertain and seasonal. Welfare board and police very much disliked. Housing very poor.

In town the Freedom Riders carried out more surveys, confirming what they heard on the reserve. They learned about local 'rules', such as only select Aboriginal people being allowed into the pub and the cafe refusing to serve Aboriginal customers.

Freedom Ride Memorial Park

64 Fox Street, Walgett NSW 2832

In Walgett, the Freedom Riders' focus turned to the local RSL (Returned & Services League) Club that was refusing entry to Aboriginal ex-servicemen.

The Freedom Riders' peaceful protest outside the club on 14 February was met with hostility. Locals jeered, spat and threw objects at the protestors, creating scenes that made national and international headlines. In his recording of the Walgett protest, Cassidy (1965) says:

In the early part of the afternoon, the Aborigines stood on the road and watched the line of students on the footpath, but as arguments developed with the white townspeople, the Aborigines moved in, and by sunset, Aborigines and students stood on the picket line together.

When the bus left Walgett, people chased it down. A truck deliberately struck the side of the bus and forced it off the road. Aarons (2019) later said about the incident:

The racists of those towns made the Freedom Ride by their hostile and sometimes violent reactions, starting with the young redneck grazier who ran our bus off the road...from then on the Freedom Ride was front and centre of media coverage.

Moree War Memorial Hall

36 Balo Street, Moree NSW 2400

The Freedom Ride arrived in Moree on 15 February 1965. There the Freedom Riders learned of council's by-law that refused Aboriginal people entry to the pool.

The Freedom Riders conducted surveys with Aboriginal people and organised peaceful pickets around town. They spoke with locals, and many agreed to attend a public meeting that evening at the Moree Memorial Town Hall.

At the meeting, the Freedom Riders presented evidence of discrimination and segregation at the pool. Inspired to act, local Aboriginal resident Neville Kelly called for the by-law to be abolished. With support from local businessman and former alderman Bob Brown, the motion passed with strong community backing.

The Freedom Riders left Moree cautiously optimistic. However, only days later they learned the segregationist by-law had been reinstated.

The Freedom Riders returned to Moree. They collected Aboriginal children from the Mission and the Bingara Road Reserve and travelled with them to the pool. Standing alongside Aboriginal families, the Freedom Riders demanded equal access. A hostile crowd gathered and tensions quickly escalated. What began as a peaceful protest turned violent, with several Freedom Riders physically attacked.

After lengthy negotiations, the mayor relented. He agreed to remove the segregationist by-law.

The Freedom Riders achieved a significant victory in Moree. The silence around racial discrimination had been broken and the call for fairness could no longer be ignored.

'Charlie and the Riders rattled the cage and some of us picked it up and ran with it.' 

– Anonymous, during 2025 Blue Plaque Trail consultation

Leonard Victor Waters Memorial Park

117 Merriwa Street, Boggabilla NSW 2409

On 17 February, the Freedom Ride arrived in Boggabilla. Despite warnings from the reserve manager not to speak with the Freedom Riders, Aboriginal families welcomed them and openly shared their experiences.

In her diary, Ann Curthoys observed, 'The people were the most talkative, cooperative and straightforwardly critical of all the Aborigines we've met.'

Residents showed the Freedom Riders overcrowded homes housing extended families, buildings patched against wind and rain and living conditions without electricity or gas. Water was collected from outdoor taps, often drawn untreated from the river.

Community members spoke about constant surveillance, police entering homes without notice and the daily struggle to maintain dignity under systems designed to control nearly every aspect of Aboriginal life.

The openness and honesty of the Boggabilla community demonstrated extraordinary courage and determination. It was a refusal to remain silent despite the risks involved.

We didn't know they were coming. Lots of good people. Made us feel lucky that they thought enough to come and stop here. Like they were looking out for mob here too. 

– Aunty May Hinch, Boggabilla, during 2025 Blue Plaque Trail consultation

Bowraville Theatre

74 High Street, Bowraville NSW 2449

The Freedom Riders arrived in Bowraville on 23 February 1965 to investigate reports of segregation at the Bowraville Picture Theatre.

Aboriginal people were forced to buy tickets separately, enter through a side door after the film had already begun and sit on the floor. These practices were widely known but rarely challenged.

The Freedom Riders organised a peaceful protest outside the theatre. With national media attention now focused on the Freedom Ride, local authorities could no longer deny the discrimination taking place.

In an interview, Edwards (2015) talks of the scene she witnessed,

That night Charlie Perkins and the students arrived at the picture theatre and tried to enter through the front door. There was a lot of pushing and shoving. Aboriginal people were out the front shouting at Mr Raymond and the few white people that were there. Mr Raymond closed the front doors on everyone outside.

It was here that a local issue became a national call for change.

Kempsey McElhone Swimming Complex

71 Belgrave Street, Kempsey NSW 2440

Arriving in Kempsey on 24 February 1965, the Freedom Riders travelled directly to Burnt Bridge Reserve to conduct surveys with Aboriginal residents.

There they learned of a council by-law allowing the manager of the pool to exclude 'undesirables' from entering. The Freedom Riders gathered Aboriginal children from the area and accompanied them to the pool.

At the entrance, the manager refused entry to every Aboriginal child as well as the Aboriginal Freedom Riders. The refusal reflected the segregation practices common in many NSW country towns.

The protest in Kempsey remained relatively quiet. Many residents ignored the demonstration, while some Aboriginal families feared the consequences of publicly supporting the Freedom Riders. Concerns about police and welfare authorities were widespread.

Uncle Fred Kelly remembers what life was like at the time:

There were a lot of people scared of the police and the welfare officers, because I remember the times when some of the kids were taken away, and some of them never, ever came back.

Although the Freedom Riders were unable to overturn the segregationist by-law in Kempsey, the national media coverage ensured the story reached audiences across Australia. Even where change did not happen immediately, the Freedom Ride exposed discrimination that could no longer remain hidden.