Our History
About Us
Ardyaloon, also known as One Arm Point or Bardi, is an Aboriginal community located on the beautiful Dampier Peninsula in Western Australia’s Kimberley region. Managed by Ardyaloon Incorporated, the community was officially established in the early 1970s and is home to the Bardi Jawi people, who traditionally inhabited this rugged mainland area and its surrounding islands—including nearby Sunday Island. The community maintains a deep connection to its traditional culture, proudly preserving centuries-old customs and initiation ceremonies (Lore).
Our unique name, “One Arm Point,” is woven into local folklore, believed to have derived from a historical story about a local pearler who unfortunately had an accident with dynamite in the bay. Generations of resilience culminated in a historic milestone on November 30, 2005, when the Federal Court of Australia formally recognized the Bardi Jawi people’s native title over their ancestral lands and waters.
With strong, enduring cultural ties to the sea, the community established the Ardyaloon Trochus Hatchery in 1988, commencing commercial operations around 1992. This vital initiative was built to foster sustainable aquaculture, growing trochus shells to reseed our pristine local reefs while also serving the high-fashion button industry. Today, Ardyaloon stands as a proud testament to cultural preservation, sustainable innovation, and a deep reverence for the ocean.
Our unique name, “One Arm Point,” is woven into local folklore, believed to have derived from a historical story about a local pearler who unfortunately had an accident with dynamite in the bay. Generations of resilience culminated in a historic milestone on November 30, 2005, when the Federal Court of Australia formally recognized the Bardi Jawi people’s native title over their ancestral lands and waters.
With strong, enduring cultural ties to the sea, the community established the Ardyaloon Trochus Hatchery in 1988, commencing commercial operations around 1992. This vital initiative was built to foster sustainable aquaculture, growing trochus shells to reseed our pristine local reefs while also serving the high-fashion button industry. Today, Ardyaloon stands as a proud testament to cultural preservation, sustainable innovation, and a deep reverence for the ocean.