Pardoo Station
Encyclopedia
Pardoo Station is a pastoral lease
, formerly a sheep station
, and now a cattle station
approximately 120 km to the east of Port Hedland, Western Australia
.
where it meets the Indian Ocean
at the southern end of the Eighty Mile Beach.
Mount Goldsworthy, located on the South Western side of the lease, is the site of the first iron ore mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia
. The Pardoo mine
, also an iron ore mine, is located in the region, too, and shares the stations name.
but became a separate entity owned by the Thompson family until 1963 when Frank Thompson sold it to Leslie (Les) Schubert.
In November 1965 Schubert swapped Pardoo along with a cash adjustment of $120,000 for Louisa Downs
and Bohemia Downs stations in the Kimberley Region. Karl Stein took over the station in January 1966.
Sometime before 1977 Karl Stein retired and sold Pardoo to Russel Peake. The Leeds family purchased Pardoo from Peake and subsequently sold Pardoo to its present owners about 4 years ago.
Les Schubert describes a history of the station in his book
Pastoral lease
A pastoral lease is Crown land that government allows to be leased, generally for the purposes of farming.-Australia:Pastoral leases exist in both Australian commonwealth law and state jurisdictions....
, formerly a sheep station
Sheep station
A sheep station is a large property in Australia or New Zealand whose main activity is the raising of sheep for their wool and meat. In Australia, sheep stations are usually in the south-east or south-west of the country. In New Zealand the Merinos are usually in the high country of the South...
, and now a cattle station
Cattle station
Cattle station is an Australian term for a large farm , whose main activity is the rearing of cattle. In Australia, the owner of a cattle station is called a grazier...
approximately 120 km to the east of Port Hedland, Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
.
Description
Originally of about 250000 acres (1,011.7 km²) is size and is on the western end of the Great Sandy DesertGreat Sandy Desert
The Great Sandy Desert is a desert located in the North West of Western Australia straddling the Pilbara and southern Kimberley regions. It is the second largest desert in Australia after the Great Victoria Desert and encompasses an area of...
where it meets the Indian Ocean
Indian Ocean
The Indian Ocean is the third largest of the world's oceanic divisions, covering approximately 20% of the water on the Earth's surface. It is bounded on the north by the Indian Subcontinent and Arabian Peninsula ; on the west by eastern Africa; on the east by Indochina, the Sunda Islands, and...
at the southern end of the Eighty Mile Beach.
Mount Goldsworthy, located on the South Western side of the lease, is the site of the first iron ore mine in the Pilbara region of Western Australia
Western Australia
Western Australia is a state of Australia, occupying the entire western third of the Australian continent. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Great Australian Bight and Indian Ocean to the south, the Northern Territory to the north-east and South Australia to the south-east...
. The Pardoo mine
Pardoo mine
The Pardoo mine is an iron ore mine located in the Pilbara region of Western Australia, 75 kilometres east of Port Hedland.The mine is fully owned and operated by Atlas Iron Limited and was, at the time of commencemenet of production, the company's only operational mine...
, also an iron ore mine, is located in the region, too, and shares the stations name.
Station history
Pardoo was originally an outcamp of De Grey StationDe Grey Station
De Grey Station is a pastoral lease formerly a sheep station and now a cattle station approx 80 kilometres to the east of Port Hedland on the mouth of the De Grey River in the Pilbara Region of Western Australia....
but became a separate entity owned by the Thompson family until 1963 when Frank Thompson sold it to Leslie (Les) Schubert.
In November 1965 Schubert swapped Pardoo along with a cash adjustment of $120,000 for Louisa Downs
Louisa Downs Station
Louisa Downs, also commonly just referred to as "Louisa" is a large cattle station midway between Fitzroy Crossing and Halls Creek in the Kimberley Region in Western Australia.-Description:...
and Bohemia Downs stations in the Kimberley Region. Karl Stein took over the station in January 1966.
Sometime before 1977 Karl Stein retired and sold Pardoo to Russel Peake. The Leeds family purchased Pardoo from Peake and subsequently sold Pardoo to its present owners about 4 years ago.
Les Schubert describes a history of the station in his book
Further reading
- Schubert, Leslie A.(1994), Wiping Out the Tracks - The Northern Odyssey: A Family Biography & Social Commentary, ISBN 0 953 57501 6
- Schubert, Leslie A.(1996), Kimberley Dreams & Realities: An Objective Study of the effects on Part Aboriginals forcibly educated in the Twentieth Century & the Tragedy of the Uneducated Indigenous. ISBN 0 646 30371 6