Cattle were taken up to the High Pains during Summer for grazing on the farmer's lease.Coloured photo of Cattle being driven along a dirt road. In the foreground are two dogs and a man on a horse. droving cattle, roper family

Photograph of a wooden bridge spanning a river, the surrounding country is heavily timbered. There are cattle strung out along the bridge and two bullock wagons? There are also six or seven people on the bridge as well as a woman in a light coloured crinoline on the right hand side. Written on the back in biro is ' This is possibly the Barnadown bridge over the Campaspe and would be about the 1860 to 1870.bridge, barnadown, barnadown bridge, campaspe river, wooden bridges, droving cattle

A text dealing with life in country areas of Australia from 1851 to 1901.Significant to this area as Greensborough was a farming area at this time.Hard cover. 322 pages, illus. Dust jacket has illustration by S.T.Gill of "Herdsmen with horses and drove of cattle"australia history, australia social conditions, michael cannon, australia country life

Three different size account pages for the sale of livestock by J. W. & E. M. Davies, Auctioneer. Two have space to take Yard Dues, Freight, Droving, Commission and Cattle Compensation from the selling price of the livestock. The third has space to take Commission, Droving, Cattle Comp., Swine Comp and Freight from the selling price. One has a yellow backing paper. Two have a date line ending in 193- and the other it ends 19- -.business, printers, cambridge press, cambridge press collection, commonwealth wool and produce co ltd, j w & e m davies, shamrock buildings

James Tyson was born in Sydney in 1823. Along with his brother the operated a wholesale and retail butchery in 1852, slaughtering cattle from their property near Balranald. He had worked his way up from farm labouring to droving cattle and initially had a property at the junction of the Lachlan and Murrumbidgee Rivers in 1846. With the discovery of gold he began droving cattle to Bendigo in 1851. He extended his holdings throughout NSW, Gippsland and then into Queensland where he died in 1898. Along the way he had become a millionaire.Nineteen pages of research on James Tyson and family.james tyson, tyson family history

The bit helps to control the horse eg in droving cattle, pulling carts. Bits vary a lot and offer varying degrees of control and communication between the rider and the horse depending upon their design and on the skill of the rider.Horses were used as the main means of transport and as labour on the farms in the Kiewa Valley and in particular for driving the cattle up on to the High Plains during the summer. The bit consists of two basic components, the bit mouthpiece that goes inside the horse's mouth, and the bit ring of a snaffle bit or shanks of a curb bit, to which the bridle and reins attach. Sidepieces and the leverage these rings or shanks use to act on a horse's mouth that determines whether a bit is the curb or snaffle family, and has a great impact on the severity of the mouthpiece.horse bit, pack horses, working horses, horse equipment

This calendar has been distributed as a advertising item for Earl’s agricultural machinery and oil depot. The business was situated at the corner of Lava and Kepler Streets in Warrnambool. The name, Acmino’ stood for Allis-Chalmers, Mitchell’s Implements, Neptune Oils’. Distributing calendars at Christmas time for the following year was, and still is, a popular advertising tool for businesses. This calendar is of minor interest as an example of the use made by businesses in the 1940s of calendars as advertising tools. It also has a local Warrnambool connection, the agricultural machinery business of F. Earl. This is a 1946 calendar with a buff-coloured sheet of crinkled paper with a brown border. It has a coloured photograph of two men droving cattle near a river and it ispasted on to the paper with a brown border around the photograph. The calendar for 1946 is printed on to the paper and also in monthly sheets pasted on to the paper on top of each other. The printing on the calendar is brown. On the back of the calendar is written in black ink, ‘French Bros’. The calendar has a red piece of string at the top for hanging the calendar up on a wall or cupboard. The calendar is torn at the edges and somewhat stained.‘With Compliments from the “Acmino” House, F.Earl (Prop.)Warrnambool Phone 484 Private 75’ ‘Allis-Chalmers Tractors Mitchell’s Implements Neptune Oils’ ‘Sales, Service and Satisfaction Guaranteed’ ‘French Bros’ ‘acmino’ house, warrnambool, f. earl, history of warrnambool

This "camp fire" hot plate has been used from the early 1900's on camp drafts /droving cattle onto and from the Victorian high plains. The size of "camp" kitchens would depend on the amount of "cattle" men required to collect and move the "herd" to and from the "lush" high plains.This "camp fire" hot plate is significant because it was donated by a member of the Roper family (the Roper's of the Kiewa Valley) a "pioneer" family. This particular camp fire hot plate originated in Tasmania however the Victorian Alps are very similar to the Tasmanian mountain regions and this type of cooking utensil was, and still is, used in isolated regions e.g. large cattle properties in the Northern Territory. This Camp Fire hot plate was used on the High Plains at the Roper Hut for approximately 35 years.This open fire hot plate is made from caste iron. It has a circular flat (cooking) base, ideal for a few thick pieces of prime steak, a high semi circular handle with a large circular carry ring, to apply a thick stick or rod through it as an insulated handle (to position the hot plate where required over a fire). The "handle" can be folded down to save space when packing it in the saddle bags. The handle has a strong metal rivet on each end (is loose enough to allow it to be moved to either side e.g. flattened). One end, of the handle, has a movable sleeve to fasten the the handle in an upright positioncamp fire cooking utensils, hot plate, cast iron cooking appliance, drovers kitchen, cattlemen

The Briggs family lived in Tawonga. Thomas assisted building the Tawonga to Bright road and drove cattle to the Bogong High Plains before marrying in 1887 and raising 7 children, 2 of whom, Ernest and Albert enlisted in WW1 in 1916. Their letters from the war give an insight into its effects and the attitude of the time.The Briggs Bros. lived in the Kiewa Valley at Tawonga. Their letters give an insight into the war and an understanding of the times. Their parents lived and worked locally further enriching an understanding of the history of the Valley.30 pages of photocopies A4 size, of the Family Tree of the Briggs Family of Tawonga, including letters from two brothers from the trenches in WWI..briggs bros.. ww1. letters. tawonga. briggs family. droving. bright road. bogong high plains.

This family history book was published as a family record of the Ah Chow family. A limited number of copies were printed. Thomas William (Bill) Ah Chow was a Chinese-Australian soldier, farmer, fire lookout and legendary bushman of East Gippsland in Victoria. Many Chinese came to the Victorian gold rush in the 1850s to seek their fortune at the Omeo and Cassilis diggings. Many of the immigrants later settled and integrated into their local communities working as farm labourers, tending market gardens, making furniture, running grocery stores and cafes or practising Chinese medicine. Thomas William "Bill" Ah Chow of Bruthen, Victoria attempted to enlist early in the War but was rejected for being "not substantially of European origin". Undeterred, he reapplied and was accepted in June 1917. During his service with the 5th Battalion, he was wounded at least three times. After the War, Bill returned to Bruthen where he drove sheep, worked cattle and eventually assisted in the building of roads through the area. He became a Forestry Commission fire-spotter and built a hut called 'Moscow Villa' in 1942. He lived in the hut during the summer months and in winter, returned to his family in Ensay. Whenever there was fire danger, he rode his horse up to the fire tower on Mt Nugong and acted as look-out. Bill worked for the Forestry Commission for more than twenty years and came out of retirement to continue his duties when no suitable replacement could be found. Bill died in 1967 and is buried in Omeo. Moscow Villa still stands and is a popular camping site This is a useful reference item. As a family history it is detailed and contains useful copies of personal documents. Bill Ah Chow, along with the Ah Chow family were well known in Orbost and East Gippsland. This booklet is a testament to his life. A soft covered 97pp book with a cream cover. On the front is a coloured photograph of a Chinese man in traditional robe and hat. On the back cover is Moscow Villa. It contains information, copies of 1949 photographs, documents, hand -written letters and a will. There is an envelope attached to the inside cover containing a CD, photos and family tree.ah-chow-william-thomas family-history-ah-chow

Roper's Hut was built in 1939 and was burnt down in 2003. It was rebuilt in 2008 and is situated on the Bogong High Plains on Duane Spur (where Duane's hut had been before it too was destroyed by (1939) bushfires, between Mt Nelse and Big River. The original hut was used as a shelter for cattlemen who grazed their cattle on the High Plains during summer. The Victorian High Country Huts Association Inc. members and friends helped rebuild the hut which is now used as an emergency shelter for visitors to the High Plains.The memorabilia is significant as the items belonged to the Roper family who were one of the original settlers of the Kiewa Valley and one of the original families who drove their cattle up to the Bogong High Plains. The burnt plaque and forks and the rebuilding of the huts (Duane's & Roper's) are significant as bush fires are a constant threat to the Bogong High Plains destroying large areas at a time.1. Bronze Plaque and 2 damaged forks from Roper's Hut which was destroyed by bush fires in 2003. 2. DVD & USB and hard copy photos of the rebuild of Roper's Hut in January 2008.The plaque had 'In Memory of / John F. P. Roper/ died 3-12-1977 / Aged 78 years / He built the original hut Feb. 1939'roper's hut, cattlemen, bogong high plains, bronze plaque, roper family, bush fires

This item was originally made to put around a farm or herd animal to enable it to be identified and found if it strayed. Horses, cows, goats and oxen were the animals most commonly given neck bells in Australia as a way of identifying and finding cattle particularly in areas where prpoerties were unfenced or when droving large herds of mixed cattle. Drovers often marked these bells as a way of identifying which cattle belonged to them. Some of these bells from the 1860's onwards were imported to Australia and some were manufactured locally. The cow bell in various sizes is often still produced to sell to tourists, particularly those in Europe. Many of these souvenir bells contain some form of art work. Although this item has no known local provenance it is retained as an early example of the bells placed around animals’ necks to stop them from straying. This is a piece of metal welded to form a cover or a bell container with a bottom opening to hold a metal clapper which is held in place by a metal ring. The top has a metal handle. The bell is very rusted and stained.animal husbandry, warrnambool, history of warrnambool, cow bell

The wool industry has been critical to the Australian economy from the early days of European settlement. The increase in wool production in the mid to late 19th century led to the need to replace the hand shears with some mechanized forms of shearing.The first commercially successful sheep shearing machinery by Frederick York Wolseley in New South Wales who was granted a patent for his machine on 28 March 1877. Many of the early settlers to North East Victoria droved sheep overland from both Sydney and South Australia and established large pastoral runs in the district. Wodonga became a major service centre for the industry and established major saleyards for the pastoral and cattle industries. The handset has the company name "Heiniger" on the side. Heiniger is a Swiss company with subsidiaries in Australia and New Zealand. It was originally established in 1946.This item is connected to a major rural industry in North East Victoria.A metal handpiece for a sheep shearing. A toothed blade is held in place with metal adjustable screws at one end. A jointed metal pipe at the other end allows attachment to the shearing machine. The hinge has been covered with leather.On adjustment knob "Heinger"shearing industry, shearing equipment, shearing handset

Roderick William Mills, known as Saltbush Bill, was the inspiration for several poems by A.B. Paterson. Born at Balnarring in 1869, Mills earned the title of Saltbush Bill whilst working on a cattle station in Queensland. On these long droving trips, he learnt the art of cracking stock whips of many different lengths and sizes, a skill that earnt him £100 after a Melbourne saddler, J.K. Jennings, suggested that no man could crack a 65-foot stock whip in three tries. Saltbush Bill succeeded on his first attempt and decided to make a career in entertainment with his skill. Over his career he performed for royalty, travelled and performed extensively overseas and lent his skill to fundraising efforts, particularly during the war. His last concert was given in the Boomerang Hall in Dandenong in 1926.A local resident of the City of Moorabbin, Saltbush Bill was an ambassador for Australia and a literary inspiration to A.B. (Banjo) Paterson. Saltbush Bill, his wife Hannah Louise Porter and their 11 children lived in Old Dandenong Road, Heatherton, where Saltbush Bill and Hannah conducted a market garden for many years. Saltbush Bill is buried in Cheltenham's Pioneer Cemetery.Black and white digital imageheatherton, banjo paterson, saltbush bill, stock whip, entertainment

Roderick William Mills, known as Saltbush Bill (left) with his sons, James Charles Mills (centre) and John James Mills (right), in London. In 1917 Saltbush Bill travelled from America to London after giving shows in various cities of the US, to spend time with his sons. James and John Mills were serving with the AIF and on leave from the French front in London. Saltbush Bill remained in London for the rest of the war as he was unable to return to Australia. Saltbush Bill, was the inspiration for several poems by A.B. Paterson. Born at Balnarring in 1869, Mills earned the title of Saltbush Bill whilst working on a cattle station in Queensland. On these long droving trips, he learnt the art of cracking stock whips of many different lengths and sizes, a skill that earnt him £100 after a Melbourne saddler, J.K. Jennings, suggested that no man could crack a 65-foot stock whip in three tries. Saltbush Bill succeeded on his first attempt and decided to make a career in entertainment with his skill. Over his career he performed for royalty, travelled and performed extensively overseas and lent his skill to fundraising efforts, particularly during the war. His last concert was given in the Boomerang Hall in Dandenong in 1926.A local resident of the City of Moorabbin, Saltbush Bill was an ambassador for Australia and a literary inspiration to A.B. (Banjo) Paterson. Saltbush Bill, his wife Hannah Louise Porter and their 11 children lived in Old Dandenong Road, Heatherton, where Saltbush Bill and Hannah conducted a market garden for many years. Saltbush Bill is buried in Cheltenham's Pioneer Cemetery.Black and white photograph of three men, one seated behind a table and two standing. The two standing are in military uniformsHandwritten in blue ink: K000733saltbush bill, stock whip, entertainment, heatherton