The Very Early Pioneers of Munglinup

The Dempsters 

Three sons of Scottish immigrants Charles Edward (Known as Edward), William and Andrew Dempster first explored the area in 1863 with Mr GM Lanarch a Victorian, George Maxwell an experienced bushman and Billy an Aboriginal and 12 horses. With private sponsorship from Mr Walter Padbury the Dempster brothers chartered the cutter Amelia and explored the south coast to Israelite Bay. Leaving the main party to return by sea, Charles and Andrew went by land to Esperance and then to Perth via Jerramungup opening up a stock route. From their Journal at the time "May 15 1863 25 miles over scrubby plains, tea-tree swamps and salt lakes, Camped at Oldfield River ; good feed, and water obtained by digging."

Charles Edward Dempster was the first to select and receive lands at Stokes Inlet near Fanny Cove. A pastoral lease E3 of 100,000 acres was granted in 1863, however in 1867 the lease was terminated in preference to lands and another pastoral lease at Mainbenup 25 miles NE of Esperance Bay. (Heritage Council of Western Australia, 2001).

In August 1864 brothers William Simon Dempster, James Pratt Dempster and Andrew Dempster arrived in Esperance from Northam. Together with their brother Charles Edward Dempster they leased over 300000 acres and stocked it with 518 sheep, 80 cattle and 19 horses.

Charles returned to Northam in 1866 becoming the MLC for Eastern Province in 1894. The 3 remaining brothers continued to share the management in Esperance on a rotational basis.

William Dempster was reported in the Western Mail on 28 May 1904 as follows: "Mr. W. E. Dempster has returned from a trip 90 miles west of their homestead, where he has been engaged laying out two extensive grass paddocks, on which the contractors are already engaged putting up a 5ft. dingo and rabbit proof fence. They intend ring-barking the whole of the paddocks, and providing water and other improvements, and thus making out-stations at Munglinup and Nairnup." ( William Edward Dempster was the son of Andrew Dempster an original Esperance Pioneer)

A report in the West Australian 10 December 1910 about the Dempster Brothers indicated: "On outlying parts of the runs at Munglinup and Nairnup, it is reported that rabbits have largely increased and are doing considerable damage."

So it is clear the Dempster Brothers had interests at Munglinup and Nairnup early in the 20th Century.

Peter Boyle was a shepherd for the Dempster brothers who was found to have shot himself on 29 May 1899.

The Moirs 

In 1865 Scottish brothers Andrew (1817-1912) and George Moir (1834-1916) from Cape Riche near Albany and uncles of the Fanny Cove Moirs held a Pastoral lease at the Oldfield River at Cowerup. 

Campbell Taylor

Campbell Taylor (1842-1900) took over Andrew and George Moirs lease Cowerup Station on the Oldfield River in 1867, Taylor was credited with tracking down and arresting "Tampin" one of the men who killed John Moir at Fanny Cove.

Explorer John Forrest stopped at Campbell Taylor's house on 20 April 1870 and reported in his diary that he visited the mouth of the Oldfield with Campbell Taylor the next day. Judging by Forrest's expedition map Taylor's lease was in the area below what is now Springdale Road where it crosses the Oldfield River. Campbell Taylor's house is clearly marked on many of the Historical Maps of the area. In 1871 Campbell Taylor moved on to Thomas River East of Esperance where he established 'Lynburn' Station. Sadly Campbell Taylor's Oldfield River house was demolished in 1961 and used as fill for a washout at the river crossing on Springdale Road (formally Telegraph Rd) by the Shire Road crew.

The Moirs of Fanny Cove

In 1873,  brothers Alexander McLaren Moir (1855-1930) and John Moir (1843-1877) from Albany took up pastoral leases of 14,000 acres at Fanny Cove, west of Esperance. A lack of fresh water forced the Moir’s away from their original settlement location at the lower reaches of the Young River to the site of “Moir Homestead” east of the inlet, approximately 2 kilometres from Fanny Cove anchorage and 0.5km inland from Fanny Cove.  They dug over five acres with shovels to plant their first barley crop. A further 57,000 acre lease which was Charles Edward Dempsters old lease was granted to them in 1888.

The brothers built a two-roomed cottage of limestone quarried from the nearby hills and bush timber, as well as shepherds' huts and a blacksmith's shop.

They farmed sheep and grew crops for fodder, but lived a very isolated life, with few other settlers in the region. The homestead's location at Fanny Cove,  was also a main entry point for gold prospectors travelling to the Dundas goldfields.

In 1877, John Moir was killed by two local aboriginal men and was buried near the homestead.

The two photos above are Fanny Cove with the Grace Darling anchored and Moirs Homestead Buildings.

Alexander managed the property alone for the next few years until he was joined by his brother William (1845-1913), who had been farming at Lake Grace. Alexander left for Wingabellup near Cranbrook in 1879. Their brother George (1852-1922) joined William at Fanny Cove in 1882 until he too left in 1902 and went to Tambellup.

William eventually took over sole management of the property and went on to have eight children with his wife Eliza Hymus (1858-1936) including Litchard 1881-1949, Maxwell 1882-1958, Rubra John 1884-1961, William George 1886-1964, Charles 1889-1979, Harold Sidney 1891-1917, Eliza Maude 1893-1973 and Ernest Roy (1896-1898).

William and Eliza later moved to Ravensthorpe. Members of the family owned and farmed the land until 1949 when Litchard Moir was found dead of a suspected heart attack in a vehicle 4 miles east of the property. In 1950 the pastoral leases were transferred to the White family. 

The Whites

The Whites did not live at Fanny Cove, building a new homestead near Young River. From this time, Fanny Cove station was known as Young River Station. The Whites converted 25,000 acres of the original Pastoral Lease to Conditional Purchase and became pioneers of Light Land farming using clover and trace elements.

According to Dr Judy Edwards the Minister for the Environment and Heritage "In the 1970s, a mining consortium expressed interest in the area.

Rather than see the mining company move in, the White family offered to surrender their pastoral lease on the condition that the State Government declare the area a national park. This was realised with the establishment of Stokes National Park.This was done on the understanding that the homestead block would be offered to the National Trust.

This was achieved in April 1971, with the property being jointly managed by the National Trust and members of the Esperance Bay Historical Society. Ownership of the land was transferred to the Crown two years later."

The Dunns 

William Henry Dunn (1888-1957) and Robert Henry Blake (1890-1960) from Albany ran a Pastoral lease originally run by the Dempsters called Nairnup from 1920 to 1953. This was a large lease extending from The Moirs lease at Fanny Cove to what we know as the Rabbit Proof Fence. Blake married Jane Harris Gibson (1886-1929) in 1920 who was Charlie Gibson's aunt. Later on the lease on the property was taken over by Charlie Gibson. In the fifties Charlie gave the Chase Syndicate the 250,000 acre lease with the exception of 10000 acres that was surveyed and is now Nairnup. The remaining land was surveyed and became Conditional Purchase blocks released in the late 1950s. 

Charles John "Charlie" (1904-1984) and Gracie Agnes Dunn nee Gurney (1913-1985) were Dingo trappers in the area. Charlie was the brother of William Henry Dunn of Nairnup. Charlie had a camp north of the estuary on the western bank of the Oldfield River. 

William Henry Dunn and Charles John Dunn's father Andrew (1849-1943) and Mary Ann Hatton (1859-1944) were very early Pioneers of Esperance initially Managing Campbell Taylor's property at Thomas River from 1884 before starting their own property at Boyatup east of Esperance.

References:

Explorations in Australia by John Forrest. books.google.com.au/books?id=NYVCLGP7NYYC&lpg=PT102&ots=EVkhQRnyj8&dq=oldfield%20campbell%20taylor&pg=PT102#v=onepage&q=oldfield%20campbell%20taylor&f=false

The Perth Gazette and Independent Journal and Politics and News 25 September 1863 page 3

The Australian Dictionary of Biography http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/dempster-andrew-3881

Hon Judy Edwards http://www.mediastatements.wa.gov.au/ArchivedStatements/Pages/CarpenterLaborGovernmentSearch.aspx?ItemId=122104&minister=D&page=18

Trove http://trove.nla.gov.au/ndp/del/home

The Early Shipping History of the South East Coast http://www.esperancedivingandfishing.com.au/wp-content/uploads/2012/09/Early-shipping-history-of-Esperance-and-the-South-East-coast.pdf

Stokes Inlet European History http://www.rivercare.southcoastwa.org.au/infodata/youngc/stokesi/benwenerup/european_heritage.pdf

Stories of the Oldfield River Ron Gibson http://www.rivercare.southcoastwa.org.au/infodata/oldfieldc/oldfields/page3.htm

The Dempsters - Rica Erickson UWA Press 1978

Faith Hope & Reality Esperance 1895-1995. Published by The Esperance Shire Council 1995

Interview with John Murison 20 October 2019