Arcoona

Arcoona or Arcoona Station is a pastoral lease that operates as a sheep station.

This article is about the pastoral lease in South Australia. For other uses, see Arcoona.

Arcoona Station is located in South Australia
Arcoona Station
Arcoona Station
Location in South Australia

It is located about 28 kilometres (17 mi) north east of Woomera in the outback of South Australia,

The station occupies an area of 828 square miles (2,145 km2).[1] The station was founded prior to 1880 and was owned by Mr A. M. Wooldridge in 1880. Wooldridge owned the Parakylia lease that he had established and then sold the western portion and kept the balance himself and renamed as Arcoona.[2] The neighbouring properties are Wirraminna to the south and Andamooka Station to the north.[3]

History

The pastoralist James Gemmell who had been managing Mundi Mundi Station left to take over Arcoona in 1893.[4]

The horse Discussion by Light Artillery from Small Talk was bought in 1906 and sent to Arcoona to stud. Richardson paid 190 guineas for the sire.[5]

It was sold in 1909 by Messrs. Richardson and Gemmell to John Pick of Terowie, who would be elected to the House of Assembly while at Arcoona. At the time the station was stocked with 12,000 sheep, 600 cattle, 250 horses and 7 camels.[6]

Although Arcoona has an arid climate it is occasionally inundated with rain, in 1919 Mr J. H. Mules reported 3 inches (76 mm) of rain falling and the lake filling fast,[7] and again on New Year's Day in 1921 4 inches (102 mm) of rain fell.[8]

Pick sold Arcoona in 1920 and bought Coondambo Station in May 1920 for £37,200.[9]

The station was restocked in 1930 with 2,000 ewes being delivered from the Matakanna district.[10]

Following a great season in 1938 the percentage of lambing was excellent with 6,637 lambs produced from 6,977 ewes.[11]

The 1942 season was fairly dry but some patchy rains provided enough feed for the sheep to graze on but not enough to fill any surface tanks. At this time the station was owned by Arcoona Pastoral Co. of which Mr. R. J. McEwin was a partner.[12]

During the drought of 1944–1945 stock numbers were very low.[13]

The station was sold once again in 1947, for an undisclosed price believed to be in excess of £75,000 on account of J. E. Pick to Kidman Estates of Adelaide. At the time the area of the property was 1,490 square miles (3,859 km2) and had an estimated flock of 25,000 sheep. The station had also received heavier than normal rainfall over the last year and all the creeks were flowing and lakes were full to capacity.[14]

In 2003 the station was selected by the then federal Science Minister, Peter McGauran, as a low level nuclear waste dump. The site was chosen as it had better security, a less environmentally sensitive access route and more saline water which has no pastoral use. About 40 cubic metres (1,400 cu ft) of radioactive waste generated each year in Australia would be stored in an underground repository.[15] The plan was abandoned in 2004,[16] following legal action from the then owners, the Polke family, as well as opposition from the state government and traditional owners.[17]

In 2008 the property was acquired by the Handbury family who also owned Collinsville Station. The property occupied an area of 3,430 square kilometres (1,324 sq mi) and was managed by Andrew Willis. The property was running a flock of about 20,000 sheep as well as 100 shorthorn cattle.[18]

The land occupying the extent of the Arcoona pastoral lease was gazetted by the Government of South Australia as a locality in April 2013 under the name 'Arcoona'.[19]

See also

References
  1. "Arcoona Station". South Australian Register. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 23 October 1909. p. 6. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  2. "North and North-West of Port Augusta". The Register. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 5 February 1924. p. 11. Retrieved 13 November 2014.
  3. "Pastoral". South Australian Register. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 24 January 1880. p. 2 Supplement: Supplement to the South Australian Register. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  4. "Mr. James Gemmell". The Barrier Miner. Broken Hill, New South Wales: National Library of Australia. 19 October 1893. p. 2. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  5. "Discussion changes hands". Western Argus. Western Australia: National Library of Australia. 7 August 1906. p. 23. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  6. "Arcoona Station". South Australian Register. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 23 October 1909. p. 6. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  7. "Fine fall at Arcoona". South Australian Register. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 29 December 1919. p. 4. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  8. "Rain in the interior". The Advertiser. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 7 January 1921. p. 8. Retrieved 27 July 2012.
  9. "Salee of Stations". The West Australian. Perth: National Library of Australia. 21 May 1920. p. 7. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
  10. "Restocking a Station". The Barrier Miner. Broken Hill, New South Wales: National Library of Australia. 25 March 1930. p. 2. Retrieved 30 July 2012.
  11. "High Lambing Percentages In Pastoral Country". The Advertiser. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 27 July 1938. p. 26. Retrieved 29 July 2012.
  12. "Season fairly dry at Arcoona". The Mail. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 11 July 1942. p. 10. Retrieved 30 July 2012.
  13. "Northern Stations sold". The Chronicle. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 13 March 1947. p. 13. Retrieved 12 September 2013.
  14. "Two Stations sold". The Advertiser. Adelaide: National Library of Australia. 7 March 1947. p. 8. Retrieved 30 July 2012.
  15. "Sheep station new site for nuclear waste dump". The Age. 9 May 2003. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  16. Eve Vincent (2007). "Nuclear Colonialism in the South Australian Desert" (PDF). RMIT. Archived from the original (PDF) on 14 May 2013. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  17. "Proposed SA nuclear waste dump complications". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 16 July 2003. Retrieved 11 August 2013.
  18. Emma Partridge (9 June 2009). "Tests aid lamb numbers". Stock Journal. Fairfax Media. Archived from the original on 5 June 2014. Retrieved 2 June 2014.
  19. "Search result for "Arcoona (LOCB)" (Record no SA0067010) with the following layers selected - "Suburbs and Localities" and " Place names (gazetteer)"". Property Location Browser. Government of South Australia. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 2 June 2016.

31.02713°S 137.04789°E / -31.02713; 137.04789

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