Diamantina Lakes Station

Last updated

Australia Queensland location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Diamantina Lakes Station
class=notpageimage|
Location in Queensland

Diamantina Lakes Station, most commonly known as Diamantina Lakes, was a pastoral lease that once operated as a cattle station in central west Queensland, and is now Diamantina National Park, a national park.

Contents

Diamantina Lakes station was located about 157 kilometres (98 mi) south east of Boulia and 239 kilometres (149 mi) north west of Windorah in the Channel Country of Queensland. The area is a mix of landscapes including sand dunes, claypans, sandstone mesas, gibber plains and river channels. The Diamantina River traverses the area meaning the plains are able to support extensive grasslands and have near-permanent naturally deep waterholes, fed by seasonal rains and the Great Artesian Basin. [1]

The traditional owners of the area are the Maiawali and Karuwali peoples, who were well supported by the watercourses, ranges and plains in the area, and maintain a close spiritual connection with it. [1]

History

The station was established in 1876 with a partnership between John Arthur Macartney and Hugh Louis Heber-Percy, who initially took up the lease. Heber-Percy stayed on at the property as a manager for many years. [2] By 1881 the property had been put for auction by Macartney, Mayne and Percy and was stocked with 5,000 cattle. [3] The station occupied an area of 1,000 square miles (2,590 km2) of open rolling downs and had double frontage on 42 miles (68 km) of the Diamantina River as well as some frontage to Mayne River and Spring Creek. [4]

Sidney Kidman acquired the property in 1908, paying A£25,000 for the station and all its stock. [5] The property occupied an area of 2,132 square miles (5,522 km2) at the time and was purchased along with nearby Mount Poole Station and at the same time as the huge Innamincka Station in South Australia; Kidman sold off Victoria Downs in the Northern Territory and Carlton Hill Station in Western Australia to finance the deal. [6]

Between 1914 and 1916 the area was struck by drought; about 10,000 cattle died on the station during this time. Kidman lost over 75,000 head of stock on all of his properties through the channel country, including Glengyle, Durham Downs, Innamincka and Sandringham Stations. Suffering financially, Kidman sold the property in 1918. [6]

George Hooper and E. A. Trenenny formed a partnership and acquired the station, then later sold it to the Queensland Government. The two later purchased Davenport Downs Station but had to relinquish it for financial reasons. [7]

In 1927 the government owned the station and sold it unstocked to a company that was still in the process of being formed, for the reserve price of A£10,000. [8]

The Queensland Government purchased the property in 1992 and subsequently gazetted the 5,070-square-kilometre (1,958 sq mi) property, capable of holding up to 12,000 head of cattle, as the Diamantina National Park. A number of stock routes still exist, and are regularly used in the park. [1]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Channel Country</span> Bioegion in Australia

The Channel Country is a region of outback Australia mostly in the state of Queensland but also in parts of South Australia, Northern Territory and New South Wales. The name comes from the numerous intertwined rivulets that cross the region, which cover 150,000 km². The Channel Country is over the Cooper and Eromanga geological basins and the Lake Eyre Basin drainage basin. Further to the east is the less arid Maranoa district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sidney Kidman</span> Australian pastoralist and entrepreneur

Sir Sidney Kidman, known as Sid Kidman and popularly named "the Cattle King", was an Australian pastoralist and entrepreneur who owned or co-owned large areas of land in Australia in his lifetime.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Davenport Downs Station</span> Pastoral lease in Queensland

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Innamincka Station</span>

Innamincka Station, often called simply Innamincka, is a pastoral lease in the Australian state of South Australia. It operates as a cattle station. It is located about 4 kilometres north-east of the small township of the same name. 23 km (14 mi) west of the Queensland border, and 246 km (153 mi) south-east of Birdsville. As of 2012 the station – the second largest in South Australia after Anna Creek station – occupied an area of 13,552 square kilometres and was owned by the pastoral company, S. Kidman & Co.

Durham Downs Station, most commonly known as Durham Downs, is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in Durham, Shire of Bullo in South West Queensland, Australia. The property is situated in a remote and arid location along Cooper Creek, where it often experiences drought and floods. It was originally established in the 1870s and belongs to S. Kidman & Co, which since 2016 has been owned by Gina Rinehart.

Glenormiston Station, commonly known as Glenormiston, is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in Queensland, Australia.

Headingly Station often just referred to as Headingly is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station. It is located about 156 kilometres (97 mi) south of Camooweal and 133 kilometres (83 mi) west of Dajarra in Queensland.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elderslie Station</span> Pastoral lease in Queensland

Elderslie Station, also known as Elderslie, is a pastoral lease that operates as a sheep and cattle station in Queensland, Australia.

Marion Downs Station, often just referred to as Marion Downs, is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in Queensland, Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Glengyle Station</span> Pastoral lease in central west Queensland

Glengyle Station is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in central west Queensland.

Annandale Station, most commonly known as Annandale, is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in central west Queensland. It is located on the tribal lands of the Wongkamala.

Tickalara Station most commonly known as Tickalara is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in south west Queensland.

Pandie Pandie Station, most commonly known as Pandie Pandie, also often spelled as Pandi Pandi or Pandy Pandy, is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in north east South Australia. It lies on the eastern edge of Karanguru territory.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Durrie Station</span> Pastoral lease and cattle station in Queensland

Durrie Station is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in Queensland, Australia.

Morney Plains Station, most commonly referred to as Morney Plains, is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in south west Queensland.

Bulloo Downs Station most commonly referred to as Bulloo Downs is a pastoral lease that operates as a cattle station in the Shire of Bulloo, Queensland, Australia. It is located on the traditional lands of the Bitjara.

Naryilco Station, also known as Naryilco Downs, is a pastoral lease in Queensland, Australia, that operates as a cattle station.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Clifton Hills Station</span> Pastoral lease in South Australia

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thylungra</span> Pastoral lease and sheep station in Queensland, Australia

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John Arthur Macartney</span>

John Arthur Macartney was an Irish-born Australian colonist, pastoralist, squatter and grazier who established a large number of frontier cattle stations in Queensland and the Northern Territory.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Diamantina National Park – Nature, culture and history". Queensland Government. 9 January 2012. Archived from the original on 7 March 2014. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
  2. ↑ "Obituary". The Brisbane Courier . Queensland. 8 April 1925. p. 12. Archived from the original on 22 December 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2013– via National Library of Australia.
  3. ↑ "Classified Advertising". The Queenslander . Brisbane, Queensland. 20 August 1881. p. 226. Archived from the original on 22 December 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2013– via National Library of Australia.
  4. ↑ "Classified Advertising". The Queenslander . Brisbane, Queensland. 20 August 1881. p. 227. Archived from the original on 22 December 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2013– via National Library of Australia.
  5. ↑ "Station purchased". Warwick Examiner and Times . Queensland. 7 December 1908. p. 5. Archived from the original on 22 December 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2013– via National Library of Australia.
  6. 1 2 Jill Bowen (2010). Kidman The Forgotten King. HarperCollins. ISBN   9780730445173.
  7. ↑ "Country News". The Morning Bulletin . Rockhampton, Queensland. 20 September 1935. p. 13. Archived from the original on 22 December 2020. Retrieved 3 May 2013– via National Library of Australia.
  8. ↑ "State cattle stations". The Sydney Morning Herald . New South Wales. 20 April 1927. p. 17. Archived from the original on 22 December 2020. Retrieved 2 May 2013– via National Library of Australia.

23°45′50″S141°08′28″E / 23.76401°S 141.14119°E / -23.76401; 141.14119

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.