TONY PROUST
I recently completed a much anticipated road trip to Cameron Corner, a surveyors’ icon, with my wife Sheila, in our 16-year-old 4WD van. My insurance – given the age of our trusty workhorse – was a hired satellite phone that gave us peace of mind.
We headed west from Bourke to Tibooburra, then the Corner, Milparinka, Broken Hill and home to Newcastle. It was a great trip and whetted our appetite for more Grey Nomad adventures.
As we drove into Milparinka, an old mining ghost town, I noticed some survey pegs. In the desert landscape, they were rather conspicuous. On enquiry, I discovered that only the day before two volunteer surveyors had marked out some boundaries for the local heritage enthusiasts. A few days later, I tracked down Colin Horsley and heard his story.
‘My partner Marian and I have been travelling for two years, since selling our surveying practice in Margaret River in WA. Originally from Sydney, we have been catching up with relatives and friends on the east coast. Since starting our travels, we have taken an interest in gold detecting – more as a reason to research and visit historic mining areas than as a way to find our fortunes. This is what attracted us to Corner Country,’ says Horsley.
‘As it was time to find a bit of work to keep the expedition rolling, we sent out a few enquiries on potential work situations in the Tibooburra and Milparinka areas. This brought us to the attention of Ruth Sandow, who drives the Milparinka heritage initiatives and promotes Corner Country tourism in general.’
Horsley says the couple were happy to volunteer their services to help define some of the Milparinka street network. Horsley’s cousin, Ian Sutherland, helped out when he passed through on his outback holiday, having been persuaded to bring his total station with him.
‘Marian and I enjoyed a terrific four months in Tibooburra, then spent a few months back in the west before heading north to do another circuit back east – looking for gold, work and good experiences as we went, of course.’ says Horsley.
The historic townships of Tibooburra and Milparinka are the two main settlements of ‘Corner Country’, located in the northwest corner of NSW. It is the place where NSW meets the borders of South Australia to the west and Queensland to the north.
This area was explored by Charles Sturt in 1844-45 in his search for an inland sea, and settled in the 1880s following the discovery of gold. Just north of Milparinka is the Depot Glen waterhole, where Sturt’s expedition was trapped for months during a severe drought. Nearby is Sturt’s cairn, which was built by his men to keep themselves occupied during their enforced stay.
Milparinka and the surrounding goldfields once had a population of several thousand and the town had many substantial buildings. Most of these are now gone, but the old stone courthouse, police station, cells and residence remain as indicators of past prosperity.
A few years ago, Ruth Sandow – who is also a local pastoralist – was instrumental in securing funds to restore the court house and police station. This cluster of buildings now comprises the Milparinka Heritage
Precinct, which houses the visitor information centre. It is staffed by volunteers who can stay in a small flat attached to the centre.
As well as promoting Corner Country tourism, Ruth organises visiting volunteers to staff the centre and assist with projects aimed at retaining the rich history of the area. Such initiatives include enlisting the help of the visiting surveyors.
The NSW Department of Lands kindly provided copies of various Milparinka survey plans dating back to 1883. Armed with these plans, Horsley and Sutherland managed to mark some strategic street intersections and alignments. As the survey progressed, what had appeared to be just random piles of stone rubble became identifiable as remnants of building walls. Placing the survey marks highlighted the orientation of the rubble and closer examination revealed a number of neatly aligned stone footings.
Following on from this initial survey work, a group of teachers and students from Ballarat Grammar School will identify the positions of significant historic sites. From past records of ownership, the artefacts found can then be assessed more accurately in terms of their relevance to earlier community activities. A better picture of life in old Milparinka will evolve in the years to come, as more volunteers contribute to the project and assist with further research and sign posting.
As this survey did not involve a full accurate reinstatement of property boundaries, there is more evidence to be found and more measurement to be done.
Surveyors who have an interest in outback history and some time to spare can volunteer in any capacity should contact Ruth Sandow at the Milparinka Visitor Information Centre on +61-8- 8091-3862 (April to October) or email pimpara.lake@bigpond.com .
Tony Proust is a town planner in Newcastle and a budding grey nomad, volunteer surveyor and author.
Issue 45; February – March 2010
