Outback history under the hammer

Outback farming history will go under the hammer later this month, ending generations of ownership by local Bourke families.

Myroolia and Part Romani will be auctioned on August 29 and when the hammer falls, more than 70 years of Davis family history will come to a close.

Also for sale is the West Mooculta property, owned by the Gordon family of Bourke.

Greg Seiler from Landmark Walsh Hughes is handling the sale of Myroolia and part Romani and said there had been enormous interest in the properties.

Recent rain has seen improvement in pastures and stock are fetching high prices, and Mr Seiler said drought in the surrounding area had not put a dent in buyer interest.

“The sale is definitely not drought related,” Mr Seiler said. “It’s a business decision that owners Tim and Sue Davis have made. They’ve had a very successful farming operation for a number of years, and had discussions with their three children about succession of the family property and they were happy with their existing careers.

“That being the case, this was an opportunity for Tim and Sue to sell and go on and do other things they want to do personally.

“It’s the end of an era, definitely.”

Myroolia has a rich history, originally part of the vast Kerribree Station of William Walter “Baldy” Davis, one time MLA for Bourke and the present owner’s great, great grandfather.

Baldy Davis took over the leasehold of Kerribree in 1874 and in 1888 the station made national news as the site of the first successful bore to tap artesian water. At its peak in the 1890s, Davis Dale and Company had 65,000 sheep under the shears. After WWI, Kerribree was divided up for soldier settlement blocks, one of which was Myroolia.

One of two blocks balloted in 1920 was Myroolia taken up by George Curran and reverting back to Davis ownership in 1948 when it was bought by Tim’s father, Keith.

Read more in the printed edition of the Western Herald