Kudnarto

Kudnarto (c. 1832 – 11 February 1855), also known as Mary Ann Adams, was an Aboriginal Australian woman of the Kaurna and Ngadjuri peoples who lived in the colony of South Australia.

In 1847 Adams gave notice that he intended to marry Kudnarto, but first, they had to obtain permission from the inaugural Protector of Aborigines in the colony, Matthew Moorhouse.

[4] The report stated that she had been placed in the Native School in Adelaide for the purpose of instruction in domestic duties before marriage, and it praised her intelligence and disposition.

[5][6][7] The Sydney Morning Herald headed their report "Marriage extraordinary",[8] while the South Australian Register opined:[9]It is an undoubted fact that the liberality of the present marriage law will favour the contemplated nuptials, whereas the pre-existing scruples under what was called the national rubric, would have presented obstacles difficult to be overcome, if not insurmountable.

Adams would not be allowed to sell or lease the land, and if Kudnarto died, he would lose the right to live there, although "there might be a renewal in favour of her children in case of her death".

[1] Thomas Snr did subsequently lease out the land while finding work on other properties, but it is not known if his wife and children accompanied him, or where they lived during this time.

[1] Thomas Snr was admitted to the Destitute Asylum on Kintore Avenue in 1881, and died aged 74 in the Royal Adelaide Hospital in February 1882.

Wanting to be independent farmers, they also applied for sections of land at Poonindie, but after several disputes with the superintendent, in 1888 they moved with their families to Point Pearce mission on Yorke Peninsula.

[13] Tim married four times, losing three of his wives to illness, and had four children with second wife Bessie (née Reeves): Lewis, Gertrude, Julia, and Arthur.

[13] Katie Edwards married Fred Warrior (aka Barney Waria), and their children included Josie Agius (1934–2016), one of South Australia's first Aboriginal health workers,[1][11][e] and Vince Copley (1936-2022), activist, leader, and elder.