Curran Wright History

Author: Greg Curran

  • Port Augusta – Michael Cullinan

    Late 1870’s

    Michael Cullinan has a number of jobs in Port Augusta, South Australia, Australia:  horse-work, fencing, and wheat lumping (carrying bags of wheat on the shoulders).

    He also works building railway lines for Barry Brooks and Fraser who were building a railway line through the wheat country north of Port Augusta (Source: Doug Curran, The History of James Cullinan, pp. 13, and Phyllis Plant, letter).

    To serve the mining and pastoral industries in the far north of the state, the Great Northern Railway was built from Port Augusta to Quorn in 1879, with the line reaching Marree [outback town at the junction of the Birdsville and Oodnadatta Tracks] in 1883, and Oodnadatta in 1891.

    Source: https://nrm.org.au/connect/blog/11-a-brief-history-on-railways-in-south-australia 

    Later, Michael works on the goods van that carted supplies to the head of the railway line (Source: Phyllis Plant, letter). He also works with a survey party in the hills around Adelaide (Source: Doug Curran).

    Related:

    1878: The South Australian Governor “turns the first sod of the Port Augusta and Government Gums Railway.” (Source: The Express and Telegraph, Adelaide, South Australia, 18 January 1878, p2)

    Picture of locomotive in late 1870s
    Source: https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/B+9843

    Locomotive no.53. Used on Port Augusta and Government Gums (Farina) Railway. Built in Manchester in 1877. Used on construction work by Barry, Brooks and Fraser until 1882 when sold to South Australian railways.” Source: https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/B+9843

    Further information on Commonwealth Railway Locomotives can be found at: https://comrails.com/cr_locos/r_nf.html 

  • Port Augusta

    Michael Cullinan works on the rail lines in Port Augusta, South Australia in the late 1870s. 

    Port Augusta is Nukunu country. It is 310 km from Adelaide.

    It was proclaimed on 24 May 1852 by Thomas Elder, named after the wife (Augusta Sophia) of the Governor of South Australia, Henry Edward Fox Young. Augusta was the daughter of Charles Marryat Senior who had been a slaveholder in the West Indies (source: Wikipedia).

    Port Augusta was considered the ‘cross-roads of Australia’ since it was the junction of major roads and rail links at the head of Spencer Gulf (source: Wikipedia).

  • Kapunda – Michael Cullinan and Betsy Wakefield

    Kapunda is in South Australia, Australia. It is 77 km from Adelaide and began as a copper mining town in the 1840’s. This mining continued till 1879. Marble was also mined here.

    According to Wikipedia, miners were traditionally Cornish, labourers were Irish and smelter specialists were Welsh. Trade and agriculture were Scottish and English. There were German farmers and timber cutters.

    2 June 1886: Michael Cullinan and Betsy Wakefield are married here.

  • Wentworth – Michael Cullinan and Mary Ann Haywood Cuff

    1914 (9th December)

    Michael Cullinan marries Mary Ann Haywood (nee Cuff) at the Wentworth Roman Catholic Church Presbytery. Michael is 62 years old, Mary Ann is 55 years old.

    Michael is listed as a grazier from Killeen [sic] Station in NSW. Mary Ann is listed as home duties from Burtundy, NSW. 

    Mary Ann’s birthplace is listed as Deloraine, Tasmania.

    NSW Marriage Registration is 1914/16550

  • Avoca Station – Michael Cullinan

    Image Source

    https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/heritageapp/ViewHeritageItemDetails.aspx?ID=5062573

    Avoca Homestead

    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.

    Daniel H Cudmore
    Daniel H Cudmore, Source: http://oa.anu.edu.au/obituary/cudmore-daniel-henry-dan-270

    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

    Avoca Homestead restored

    Image Source

    https://www.visitnsw.com/destinations/country-nsw/the-murray/wentworth/accommodation/avoca-darling-hospitality