Avoca Station, on the River Darling in NSW, was established in the 1870s. At its height it covered 1,100 square miles.
In the 1870’s, Michael Cullinan works here for Mr Daniel Henry Cudmore. The Cudmore family owned properties in South Australia and New South Wales. Avoca Station remained in the Cudmore family from 1871 to 1915.
Initially Michael travels to Wentworth and takes back a pack of 16 kangaroo dogs, a type of dog specifically bred for hunting kangaroos (see: Wikipedia and Outback Family History). They hunt in the Milkingay country near Traveller’s Lake.
Michael is paid a salary and what he could get for the kangaroo skins. He has one man working as a cook for him.
He does not work here long though as the dogs aren’t good hunters. He takes them back and moves onto another job (Source: Doug Curran: The Family History of James Cullinan).
Next, Michael does rabbiting with Tom Wakefield (his future brother in law) for 1 schilling a scalp on the east side of the Darling River. Tom had a dray and 3 horses carting water and food out to the Michael and his men. Between them they had 100 traps of which Michael worked 100 for himself. He averaged 100 rabbits per day 7 days a week. He made his first 1000 pounds through this job. Eventually the price for rabbits dropped to 1 penny and they stopped rabbiting (Source: Letter to Cherry and Don, from Andrew Edward Cullinan, Glenora, Box 16 Birchip, 1980).
During his rabbiting period, he is courting Betsy Wakefield from the Hackham, Noarlunga, South Australia.
Further Information: Avoca Station – Wikipedia
