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Nookawarra Station is a pastoral lease and sheep station located in the Mid West region of Western Australia. The station occupies an area of approximately 604,000 acres (244,430 ha).

Situated approximately 350 kilometres (217 mi) to the north-east of Geraldton, it includes a good length of the Murchison River within its boundary. The property adjoins Boolardy, Milly Milly and Mileura Stations.

Early history

The station was taken up as early as 1875 by Edward Wittenoom and his brother Frank Wittenoom; Edward moved on after about five years but Frank stayed on and sold the property in 1926.

The Murchison amateur racing club was established at Nookawarra by Frank Wittenoom in 1881. Races were held at the property for the next 16 years with Wittenoom winning many races.

In 1886, the 500,000-acre (202,343 ha) property held 10,000 sheep under the management of Mr. J. Judge, as well as 250 cattle and 170 horses. It was observed at this time that the land was in good condition and was open grass plain lightly wooded with gum trees, acacia and mulga. The property was watered with clay holes and shallow wells.

The Governor of Western Australia, Frederick Broome, visited the station as part of his tour of the Mid West in 1887.

The Murchison pastoral show was held at the station showgrounds in 1894.

Charles Pretlove, who died in 1898, managed the station during the mid-1890s.

John Hearn managed the station in the late 1890s for Wittenoom; he later went to purchase Gabyon Station.

Edward Telfer also managed the station in the early 1900s.

John Judge managed the station through the 1900s; he died in 1909 in Geraldton hospital after a protracted illness.

An Aboriginal man named Peter was killed by two other Aborigines at the station in 1912. The two men accused were thought to have killed him as part of a revenge attack. The two accused were later released for lack of a witness.

1929 was a good year, with 13,000 sheep and lambs being clipped for satisfactory results. The flock contained 3,800 lambs and the blowfly was said to be very active and needing extra attention. The station also made a "satisfactory" cattle sale.

Notable events

Jack Smith, an employee at Nookawarra, was accidentally shot in the chest with a .310 rifle. The mishap occurred in 1949 when Smith and another man were shooting from the car they were in and a rifle accidentally discharged. The bullet entered Smith's chest, pierced his lung and exited through his back. Smith was taken to Geraldton hospital to recover.

Les Schubert purchased the station from Nookawarra Pastoral Company for $75,000 in 1972 when it was carrying 22,000 sheep. Wool prices were disastrously low at the time.

On 9 October 1985, Mervyn Tomkins ran out of fuel and crashed his airplane, a Cessna 150G VH-KPP, on the property while out mustering sheep with a number of jackaroos on the ground on motorcycles. He survived with no substantial injuries. The aircraft was replaced by Cessna 150L VH-EKL in 1992.

Mervyn Tomkins, station manager in 1997, was cleared of dumping a pair of jackaroos, Bradley John Carr, 21, and Benjamin Goeree, 19 in the desert in 1997.

See also

• List of pastoral leases in Western Australia

References

1. "Murchison Station sale". Geraldton Guardian (WA : 1906 - 1928). WA: National Library of Australia. 2 December 1926. p. 2. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
2. "Wittenoom, Sir Edward Charles (Horne) (1854–1936)". Biography of Sir Edward Charles Wittenoom (Horne) (1854-1936). National Centre of Biography, Australian National University. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
3. "Mr. F.B. Wittenoom dead". Western Mail. Perth, WA: National Library of Australia. 14 September 1939. p. 7. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
4. "The Murchison". The West Australian. Perth, Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 31 May 1886. p. 3. Retrieved 24 June 2012.
5. "The Governor's visit to the Murchison". The West Australian. Perth, Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 27 October 1887. p. 3. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
6. "Murchison Pastoral show". Western Mail. Perth, Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 17 November 1894. p. 45. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
7. "Advertising". Western Mail. Perth, Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 4 November 1898. p. 56. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
8. "Booklet - The Pioneer Suffragettes of Casterton and District". Archived from the original on 1 November 2012. Retrieved 27 November 2012.
9. "Perth Hotel tragedy". Kalgoorlie Western Argus. Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 19 July 1910. p. 33. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
10. "Missing friends". Sunday Times. Perth, Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 1 September 1907. p. 4 Section: Second Section. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
11. "Mr. John Judge". Western Mail (Western Australia). Perth, Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 13 March 1909. p. 20. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
12. "Aboriginal murdered". The Argus. Melbourne, Victoria: National Library of Australia. 21 September 1912. p. 20. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
13. "Stock and Station". Geraldton Guardian and Express. Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 21 September 1929. p. 2. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
14. "Local and general". Geraldton Guardian. Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 2 April 1949. p. 2. Retrieved 27 May 2012.
15. Schubert, L. A. (Leslie Arthur), 1922- (1994), Wiping out the tracks: The Northern Odyssey p.12 / by Leslie A. Schubert, Blue Bay Publishers, ISBN 978-0-646-17893-6
16. "Aviation safety investigations and reports". Australian Transport Safety Board. 12 March 1986. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
17. http://www.airsafety.com.au/ozreg/acrdc218.htm
18. http://www.antonakis.ca/registers/australia/20110718.txt
19. David Reed (31 July 1997). "Court Clears Man Who Dumped Pair In Desert". NSW: Sydney Morning Herald. p. 1. Archived from the original on 30 December 2012. Retrieved 29 November 2012.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)

External links

• Map of the station from before 1993

26°18′06.52″S 116°52′43.41″E / 26.3018111°S 116.8787250°E / -26.3018111; 116.8787250

• Homesteads in Western Australia
• Stations in the Mid West (Western Australia)
• 1875 establishments in Australia