James Noble

James Noble (c1876- 25 November 1941) was a missionary and the first Aboriginal clergyman in the Anglican Church of Australia. He was also a significant source of evidence in investigations into what became called the Forrest River Massacre.

Biography Early life Noble worked as a stockman during the early 1890s. Reputedly born in North Queensland, he later came to work at Invermien station near Scone, New South Wales.

Clerical career In 1896 Noble came to work at Yarrabah Mission near Cairns, Queensland, where he 'became indispensable' to the missionary efforts of superintendent Ernest Gribble. In September 1925 Noble became the first Aboriginal Anglican clergyman in Australia, when he was made deacon in a ceremony at St George's Cathedral, Perth. In 1927 Noble gave evidence before a Royal Commission of Inquiry which concluded that police had probably murdered eleven people, but could not ascertain which individuals had been responsible.

After their return to Yarrabah in 1932, the Nobles went to work with Gribble at the Palm Island mission. Two years later, Noble's poor health forced him to retire from Palm Island, and he returned with his family to Yarrabah. He died in 1941 after suffering injuries in a fall.