Vale Herb Warton
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people should be aware that this post contains the image and name of a deceased person and that these have been reproduced with permission of the family.
We are deeply saddened to share that renowned author Herb Wharton has passed away, aged 90.
His literary contributions and impactful storytelling rooted in Indigenous culture and life in the outback will continue to touch many.
Herb Wharton (1936 –2026) was born in Cunnamulla, Queensland, and began working as a drover in his teenage years. He started writing for the first time around the age of 50. In his poem ‘Kings with Empty Pockets’, Herb tells of the allure, romance and harsh realities of a stockman’s life.
His maternal grandmother was of the Kooma people; his grandfathers were Irish and English. In 1992 with the publication of his first book, Unbranded, he committed to novel form his experiences of his long years spent on the stock routes of inland Australia. Cattle Camp, a collection of droving histories as told by Murri stockmen and women, was published in 1994. Where Ya’ Been Mate?, a collection of short stories, followed in 1996.
Herb travelled extensively throughout Australia and abroad. In 1998, he was selected for a residency at the Australia Council studio in Paris where he completed Yumba Days, his first book for young readers. He was awarded the Australia Council Award for Lifetime Achievement in Literature in 2012, and in the 2020 Queen's Birthday Honours, Herb was made a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) for 'significant service to the literary arts, to poetry and to the Indigenous community'. Most recently he was the recipient of a black&write! Fellowship in 2022.
His first work (initially published in 1992), Unbranded, was republished in 2023 as part of the University of Queensland Press’ First Nations Classics Series with an introduction by Kev Carmody. This novel is based on his experiences as a stockman in the Australian outback. He subsequently published several collections of short stories and poetry, and a young-adult novel.
Herb did much of his earlier writing from a flat in the Yumba...
"It all started with writin’ when an old mate of mine asked me a question about the past and the present. I was always argumentative, but I couldn’t answer him. I borrowed some pen and paper to write him a letter and then I re-read it and I thought, “That’s a pretty good letter, and him bein’ a song writer I’d better turn it into a poem.” I did, and I sent it to him, but I still didn’t answer his question. So I wrote five more poems, and then I kept writin’ and then eventually I wrote about a hundred more. All that and a few books later, I still haven’t answered his question. I don’t know if I write poetry or prose and I don’t give a bugger!"
"I belong to the land, it gives me me identity. I don’t own it. Some people do, but they will never belong to it."
(Quote from an interview with 'Sensanostra', Oct 2013)
May his words continue to find new readers. Our deepest condolences to his family and friends.
Vale Herb Wharton.
