Beetaloo
17°12′58″S 133°48′07″E / 17.216°S 133.802°E Beetaloo Station is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in the Northern Territory.
It is situated about 48 kilometres (30 mi) north west of Elliott and 295 kilometres (183 mi) south east of Borroloola. The property is surrounded by other pastoral leases including Hayfield, Amungee Mungee and Tanumbirini Stations to the north, Hayfield and Newcastle Waters Station to the west, Tandyidgee, Ucharonidge and Mungabroom to the south and the Mambilya-Rrumburriya Aboriginal Land Trust to the east. The Carpentaria Highway crosses the property through the north east corner and the Newcastle Creek flows through a good portion of the lease from east to west.[1]
The property currently occupies an area of 10,500 square kilometres (4,054 sq mi) and was purchased by the Dunnicliff-Armstrong family in 2002 for A$20 million.[2]
The Station was established in the 1890s by Harry M. Bathern who had overlanded cattle to many other properties in the Territory including Brunette Downs, Eva Downs and Emu Downs. When Bathern died in 1928 the property occupied an area of 3,000 square miles (7,770 km2).[3]
Several bushfires in 1951 burnt out a total of 5,000 square miles (12,950 km2) across Beetaloo and neighbouring Newcastle Waters stations, with Beetaloo reported to be one of the worst affected. Compounding the immediate loss of stock and grazing pasture, drought followed the fires leading to further losses of the surviving stock.[4] [5] The manager, Wally Bathern, expressed concern that when the wet season arrived, bogs would form around waterholes and the weakened cattle were at risk of becoming stuck.[6]
See also
References
- ^ "Northern Territory Pastoral Properties" (PDF). Northern Territory Government. 2003. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
- ^ Matthew Cawood (29 April 2014). "Making water work at Beetaloo". The Land. Fairfax Media. Retrieved 10 April 2015. at a cost of A$20 million.
- ^ "A northern pioneer". The Chronicle. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 21 April 1928. p. 21. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
- ^ "Toll Of Fire In Northern Territory". The West Australian. Perth: National Library of Australia. 26 November 1951. p. 1. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
- ^ "Bush Fire Threat To Stations". The Examiner. Launceston, Tasmania: National Library of Australia. 25 June 1951. p. 8. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
- ^ "Heavy N.T. stock loss". The News. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 27 November 1951. p. 5. Retrieved 10 April 2015.