[1] The Gulidjan people were hit hard by the European colonisation of their land shortly after the foundation of Melbourne.
For three years, the Gulidjan actively resisted invasion by driving off livestock and raiding stations.
According to Jan Critchett's study, an estimated 300-350 Aboriginal people were murdered in the 14 years from 1834 to 1848, during the colonial invasion of the Western District.
[11] The Gulidjan successfully resisted his attempts at cultural genocide through the indoctrination of Christian values and a sedentary lifestyle, and the mission was closed in 1848.
[13] Coloniser Hugh Murray, who first claimed the area in September 1837, asserted in 1853 that the local Gulidjan tribe was small, numbering between 35 and 40.
[citation needed] However, it is widely acknowledged that Australian historical accounts minimise the impact of genocidal practices on Aboriginal populations, and instead emphasise causes of population decline that have only indirect associations with the behaviour of colonisers, such as disease, or that blame Aboriginal communities for their own decline, such as due to violence.
[citation needed] In the 1860s, a small reserve, Karngun, was established for the Gulidjan people on the Barwon River at Winchelsea, and was maintained until 1875.
A house was built for them on the present Colac hospital site, but they preferred living in their traditional mia-mias.