Cooya Pooya Station most often referred to as Cooya Pooya or Cooyapooya is a

pastoral lease A pastoral lease, sometimes called a pastoral run, is an arrangement used in both Australia and New Zealand where government-owned Crown land is leased out to graziers for the purpose of livestock grazing on rangelands. Australia Pastoral lease ...

operating as a

sheep station A sheep station is a large property ( station, the equivalent of a ranch) in Australia or New Zealand, whose main activity is the raising of sheep for their wool and/or meat. In Australia, sheep stations are usually in the south-east or sout ...

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

Description

The property is situated approximately south of Roebourne and south east of Dampier along the banks of the

Harding River The Harding River is a river in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. It was named on 31 July 1861 by the surveyor and explorer Francis Gregory while on expedition in the area, after one of the volunteer members of his expedition, John Hard ...

in the

Pilbara The Pilbara () is a large, dry, thinly populated region in the north of Western Australia. It is known for its Aboriginal peoples; its ancient landscapes; the red earth; and its vast mineral deposits, in particular iron ore. It is also a glo ...

region of Western Australia. The country is composed of open grassy plains and underlying slopes covered with spinifex. The unusual name of the station is a corruption of ''Cooa Pooey'', the Aboriginal name of a water hole near the homestead.

History

The first settlers in the area were the pastoralists W. A. Taylor and Thomas Lockyer, during the mid-1860s. Several years later, Taylor sold his interests and left the area, which had already become known as "Cooyapooyo", "Cooyapooya" and "Cooya Pooya". Lockyer, who arrived from Northam, had originally named his lease "Table Hill Station". By 1885 Lockyer and his four sons had a flock of 28,000 sheep which were shorn to produce 220 bales of wool. The Lockyers acquired a run further inland on the

Fortescue River The Fortescue River is an ephemeral river in the Pilbara region of Western Australia. It is the third longest river in the state. Course The river rises near Deadman Hill in the Ophthalmia Range about 30 km south of Newman. The river flo ...

which when combined with Table Hill had a total area of of which were enclosed in sheep proof fencing dividing it into eight paddocks. The merged station became known as "Cooya Pooya". George Lockyer died at Cooya Pooya of

pleurisy Pleurisy, also known as pleuritis, is inflammation of the membranes that surround the lungs and line the chest cavity (pleurae). This can result in a sharp chest pain while breathing. Occasionally the pain may be a constant dull ache. Other sy ...

in 1893 at 49 years of age. He had arrived at the property in 1865 representing his father's pastoral syndicate. The Lockyer brothers had built up a large pastoral interest in the region; they also owned Mulga Downs and Portland Stations. Following a

drought A drought is defined as drier than normal conditions.Douville, H., K. Raghavan, J. Renwick, R.P. Allan, P.A. Arias, M. Barlow, R. Cerezo-Mota, A. Cherchi, T.Y. Gan, J. Gergis, D. Jiang, A. Khan, W. Pokam Mba, D. Rosenfeld, J. Tierney, an ...

the station was abandoned for a time in 1897, with all stock being removed to the tableland. Samuel L. Burges owned Cooya Pooya in 1911 and also acquired neighbouring Springs Station in the same year. By 1912 the property was carrying a flock of 22,000 sheep and

shearing Sheep shearing is the process by which the woollen fleece of a sheep is cut off. The person who removes the sheep's wool is called a '' shearer''. Typically each adult sheep is shorn once each year (a sheep may be said to have been "shorn" or ...

produced 340 bales of wool. In 1915 the combined flock size between Cooya Pooya and Mulga Downs was 35,000 sheep. The manager, Mr G. R. Turner, left the property in the same year, after seven years in charge. The Stove brothers acquired the station prior to 1925, adding it to their portfolio of property, which included Mount Welcome and Cherritta stations. The region was struck by a severe

cyclone In meteorology, a cyclone () is a large air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from above (opposite to an anti ...

in early 1925, causing severe damage to Cooya Pooya and many other properties in the area. By 1950, Percy Stove and his wife left the station to move south. Their son Jack Stove took over management of the property in their absence. The following year Stove was lucky not to be killed when a fire broke out in the storeroom, and a box of

gelignite Gelignite (), also known as blasting gelatin or simply "jelly", is an explosive material consisting of collodion-cotton (a type of nitrocellulose or guncotton) dissolved in either nitroglycerine or nitroglycol and mixed with wood pulp and saltpe ...

exploded. An estimated £200 worth of damage was caused to the storeroom, the roof of which blew off in the explosion. The old homestead was placed on the state heritage list in 1998. The listing recognized the major role that the station played in the development of the pastoral industry in the region. The building is a single storey stone structure with an iron roof and detached kitchen.

References

* {{Stations of the Pilbara Western Australia Pastoral leases in Western Australia Stations (Australian agriculture) 1864 establishments in Australia State Register of Heritage Places in the City of Karratha

Description

History

See also

References